Former President Donald Trump is slated to speak at the Republican National Convention Thursday night.

(Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)CHARLOTTE, N.C. The Republican National Convention is underway. At about 12:15 p.m., the roll call of states is scheduled to happen.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. Donald Trump will accept the nomination of the Republican Party for a second term as president in Jacksonville, the Republican National Committee Chair announced Thursday night in a news release. We are thrilled to celebrate this momentous occasion in the great city of Jacksonville, RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel announced. We look forward to bringing this great celebration and economic boon to the Sunshine State in just a few short months.We are thrilled to hold @realDonaldTrump's acceptance of the Republican nomination in the great city of Jacksonville! We look forward to bringing this great celebration and economic boon to the Sunshine State! Ronna McDaniel (@GOPChairwoman) June 12, 2020The RNC said their choice of Jacksonville came after North Carolina Gov.

Trump and the RNC had demanded that the August convention be allowed to move forward with a full crowd and that participants not have to wear face coverings. Protecting public health and safety during this pandemic is a priority.A traditional GOP convention brings together roughly 2,500 delegates, the same number of alternate delegates and many times more guests, journalists and security personnel. They agreed to continue talking about ways to have a safe convention in Charlotte.But Cooper made clear to Trump that those conditions would likely be impossible to accommodate. The RNC's leader, Ronna McDaniel accused Cooper of dragging his feet on giving them guidance for proceeding with convention plans. Tennessee's Bill Lee said GOP officials were coming to scout Nashville on Thursday.

North Carolina Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy Cohen sent a letter Monday to the top RNC organizer asking for a written safety plan after Trump demanded in a tweet that North Carolina guarantee a full-scale, in-person convention will be held. Cooper and Cohen say that they had discussed various scenarios with convention organizers but want their plan in writing. Were ready to hold the RNC convention in North Carolina in a safe way. Cooper said his administration required a similar written plan from NASCAR ahead of its recent race in the Charlotte area that was held without fans. The county surrounding Charlotte has had the most virus cases of any in North Carolina, and the state is experiencing an upward trend in cases.