Vegas gets the chance to compete for Democratic National Convention

Thursday, Dec. 4, 1997 | 9:48 a.m.

Gov. Bob Miller Wednesday urged Las Vegas officials to ban together to out-bid 26 other cities in the race to host the Democratic National Convention in 2000.

"It's going to take a big effort, a major effort to attract something like that," Miller said. "It would be great for the community if it occurred."

The Democratic National Committee surprised elected leaders here Wednesday, including the governor, when it included Las Vegas on the list of 27 cities invited to bid on the convention.

Several other western cities -- Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Seattle -- were among those asked to submit bids.

DNC Co-Chairman Steve Grossman and Roy Romer extended the Las Vegas invitation in a letter to Mayor Jan Laverty Jones.

Jones was out of town and could not be reached for comment, but her spokeswoman, Cathy Hanson, said the mayor was excited about the prospects of hosting the convention and indicated it shows the city is coming of age.

Miller agreed.

"It speaks well for Las Vegas that we would be considered," Miller said. "I think we've broken down many of the misconceptions of a lot of organizations."

For a long time, gambling and Las Vegas were considered taboo among political organizations wary of the strength of conservative voters.

Miller said he recalls helping district attorneys across the county change a bylaw in their organization in 1979 that prevented them from holding annual meetings in Nevada.

Since then, Miller said, the district attorneys have met in Las Vegas several times.

Today, as gambling has spread to 48 states and the casino industry has gone corporate, the old stereotypes about Las Vegas have indeed begun to disappear.

This past summer, the National Governor's Association held its annual meeting in Las Vegas for the first time. Miller was the outgoing chairman of the organization.

President Clinton, who has been here several times within the past two years, addressed the governors at The Mirage before playing a six-hour round of golf with NBA superstar Michael Jordan at the Las Vegas Country Club.

Clinton was here three weeks ago for a series of fund-raisers and stayed overnight at the home of his longtime friend, Las Vegas SUN Editor Brian Greenspun.

Two weeks ago, Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., flew to Las Vegas on a Mirage Resorts Inc. corporate jet for a GOP fund-raiser, sponsored by the American Gaming Association.

"People feel comfortable in Las Vegas," said Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev. "No one can do a convention better than we can."

Reid said hosting the Democratic convention in 2000, where his good friend, Vice President Al Gore, is likely to be the top presidential contender, would be one of the "biggest things ever to happen to Las Vegas."

The closest Las Vegas has come to hosting a national political convention was in 1987, when a site selection panel of the Republican National Committee came here to consider the city for its 1988 convention.

At the time, former Reno lawyer Frank Fahrenkopf was chairman of the RNC and the site selection committee. Las Vegas ended up losing out to New Orleans.

DNC spokeswoman Michelle Kucera said Las Vegas was asked to submit a bid for its four-day meeting because of the city's reputation as a dynamic community and top convention site.

She said the DNC was comfortable Las Vegas could handle the convention, which is expected to entertain about 5,000 delegates and 15,000 members of the working press.

The convention likely would be held at the Thomas & Mack Center, which has about 18,500 seats. Several thousand more seats could be added on the floor to accommodate the Democrats.

Kucera said the 1996 Democratic National Convention in Chicago generated more than $130 million in revenues for the city, a figure that did not go unnoticed by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, which would be called upon to spearhead the 2000 bid.

Rossi Ralenkotter, the LVCVA's vice president of marketing, also expressed confidence in being able to handle the convention, which is expected to take place in mid-to-late August.

"If the opportunity's there, we'll have the space," Ralenkotter said, adding the only concern would be a scheduling conflict with another convention.

According to DNC officials, Las Vegas must express a formal interest in bidding by Jan. 16. The deadline for submitting a bid is March 20.

DNC officials plan to announce the host city next summer or fall.