Race to host 2024 Republican convention: Salt Lake City out, Milwaukee, Nashville finalists

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It's down to two cities in the race to host the 2024 Republican National Convention.

Fox News confirms that the Republican National Committee’s (RNC) site selection committee for the 2024 nominating convention has dropped Salt Lake City, Utah from contention. That leaves Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Nashville, Tennessee as the final two cities vying to host the GOP's next national convention.

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RNC chair Ronna McDaniel was in Milwaukee on Wednesday to meet with officials, to make up for the earlier official visit she missed due to a canceled flight. And officials from Milwaukee and Nashville will be in the nation’s capital next week to make their final cases to the site selection committee. 

An aerial view of the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio. (Fox News )

A source with knowledge of the RNC’s thinking tells Fox News that Salt Lake City didn’t the have the availability to handle the convention because the city’s main arena will be undergoing upgrades during the summer of 2024.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania was dropped from contention earlier this year.

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"The RNC is very appreciative of the overwhelming interest and competitive bids from cities across the country, especially Salt Lake City and Pittsburgh, to host the 2024 Republican National Convention. We look forward to entering the final stages of the selection process and delivering an incredible convention for our Party," RNC senior adviser Richard Walters said in a statement.

The convention city news was first reported Thursday morning by Politico.

Kaitlin Eskelson, Visit Salt Lake’s President & CEO, told Fox News that "due to a variety of scheduling issues market-wide and a surge in post-COVID convention bookings, the SLC RNC Convention bid committee kindly withdrew for consideration in 2024. We thank the RNC for the chance to bid and express our collective support of the RNC and its marquee events and initiatives."

The final decision is expected to be announced at the RNC's summer meeting in early August.

Fox News' Lee Ross contributed to this story