President Donald Trump will gather with Republicans for a first-of-its-kind midterm year convention at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, which holds roughly 20,000 people, from Sept. 9-10.
While many details about the event remain a mystery, here’s what we do know.
Not a typical convention
Trump announced the event at the end of June, giving city officials only three months to prepare.
A typical party convention conducts party business, such as deciding a policy platform and electing delegates. None of that is planned for September’s event.
Instead, the event is being touted as a “Trumpapalooza” fundraiser meant to “celebrate the America-First movement and raise resources to support Republican candidates” ahead of the Nov. 3 general election.
Trump is expected to speak, but no other schedule or guest list has been shared publicly.
Why Texas?
All eyes are currently on Texas, which will see multiple competitive races in November—including the highly contested US Senate race between Republican Ken Paxton and Democrat James Talarico.
Recent polling shows Talarico five points ahead of Paxton, while a Fox News poll shows a near dead heat in the race for Texas Governor between Republican incumbent Greg Abbott and Democratic nominee Gina Hinojosa.
Related: Republicans suppressed voters in Dallas County. Now they’re holding a convention there
The cost
Ticket prices are costly, with out of state attendee tickets ranging in the thousands.
Although prices ticket prices were recently slashed in half for Texans, a top-tier “Honorary Delegate” package, which was originally $20,000, is now $10,000. A second-tier option fell from $15,000 to $7,500.
The opposition
Local Democratic and civil rights groups such as the Dallas County Democratic Party and Next Generation Action Network have already announced plans for counter protests in the area during the event.
