"The Road to Milwaukee."

My, that phrase has an undeniably nice ring to it.

That simple four-word incantation would make its way into the ears of millions of Americans if Milwaukee won the bid to host the Democratic National Convention in 2020. Every Democratic presidential candidate would have their sights on Milwaukee, the final stop on their road to the Presidential nomination. National news outlets, spirited campaigners, and candidates alike would be uttering that phrase repeatedly for over a year leading up to the Democratic Party’s big announcement. Sounds like good publicity, doesn’t it?

Alex Lasry, senior vice president of the Milwaukee Bucks, community-involved Milwaukeean, and former Deputy Assistant for the Obama administration is spearheading the charge to put Milwaukee in the national spotlight. Richie Burke, president and CEO of GoGeddit Marketing and Media (GGMM) sat down with Lasry on The GoGedders Podcast to talk all things DNC.

Our city is one of three finalists vying for the spot, and victory would make the new Fiserv Forum the spot where the Democratic Party officially announces its nominee for the presidential race. Milwaukee is up against Houston and Miami, and Alex thinks The Good Land has a real shot at winning. Milwaukee’s great drivability, restaurant scene, affordability, event sites, and July weather are just a few things that Lasry thinks gives us a leg up.

The convention would bring a huge positive impact to our city from both an immediate economic and long-term marketability perspective. The revenue brought into local businesses is estimated to fall between $200 million and $300 million dollars, and Lasry wants to emphasize that those dollars won’t just be going into the hospitality industry. It’s not just downtown, and it’s not just restaurants and hotels that will benefit from the extra traffic – all of Milwaukee would see a well-deserved boost, contributing to our already-apparent upswing as a city.

Over the convention’s multiple weeks, Milwaukee will have over 50,000 visitors attending 1,500 events throughout the city. This presents a unique opportunity for Milwaukeeans to work together – Alex made a point to talk about the ways in which the events would be something truly beneficial for all Milwaukee businesses, especially those that are women- and minority-owned.

The 50,000 visitors will also be intimately interacting with Milwaukee and its inhabitants in a special way. They’ll be calling Milwaukee home for a few weeks, which means students, recent graduates, families, and professionals alike will get a true feel of what it’s like to live here. Perhaps they’d even envision themselves living here one day.

Tune in to the most recent episode of The GoGedders Podcast to hear Alex Lasry go in-depth about the convention, its innumerable benefits, and the process behind getting the bid. (Spoiler alert: he took some rather important Democratic Party representatives to Wolski’s!)

Spotify: https://goo.gl/nsE38s
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