WASHINGTON (Gray DC) – The Republican National Convention kicks off Monday in Milwaukee as the GOP tries to take back the White House, with Donald Trump expected to officially become the party nominee.
While originally formed to choose presidential candidates, party conventions have morphed into a TV show to broadcast a candidate’s platform. Republicans hope the event can set the stage for success in November.
The modern American political convention took shape in the early ‘70s when political elites were largely taken out of choosing a candidate and parties began to have voters select a nominee in primaries.
Todd Belt, director of political management at George Washington University, explained the process. “The people in the state were directly selecting delegates to go to the conventions, and those delegates then voted for the nominee. And this tied it much closer to the popularity of the candidate within each of the states.”
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