Rain Will Keep 65,000 Ticketholders From Obama

Venue change short-changes Obama supporters.

Image by Chris Keane / Reuters

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — President Barack Obama’s acceptance speech at this week’s Democratic National Convention has been moved indoors from Bank of America Stadium due to weather concerns, convention officials confirmed Wednesday morning.

The Stadium had become a focal point of criticism over its ties to Wall Street, but also a point of pride for Democrats who argued that their convention would be the first to be book-ended by events open to the public. Instead, 65,000 supporters of Obama will be locked out of the far-smaller Time Warner Cable Arena.

Convention officials and the Obama campaign have been talking up their ability to fill the more than 75,000 seats in the Stadium, even as some reports suggested they were having difficulty doing just that. They pledged to be in the stadium in rain or shine, but that didn’t last.

DNCC CEO Steve Kerrigan said that Obama would address the disappointed supporters on a conference call tomorrow afternoon, and that they would attempt to get his supporters into other Obama rallies before election day.

The full statement from the DNCC:

“We have been monitoring weather forecasts closely and several reports predict thunderstorms in the area, therefore we have decided to move Thursday’s proceedings to Time Warner Cable Arena to ensure the safety and security of our delegates and convention guests,” said DNCC CEO Steve Kerrigan. The energy and enthusiasm for our convention in Charlotte has been overwhelming and we share the disappointment of over 65,000 people who signed up for community credentials to be there with the President in person. We encourage our community credential holders and Americans across the country to continue to come together with their friends and neighbors to watch and participate in history. The President will speak to these credential holders on a national conference call tomorrow afternoon, and we will work with the campaign to ensure that those unable to attend tomorrow’s event will be invited to see the President between now and election day.”