MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee was shining in the national spotlight, hosting the first showdown of the 2024 presidential race.
Wednesday night’s GOP Debate brought about 7,000 people into the city, and they spent lots of money at local businesses.
The co-owner of Third Street Market Hall showed us photos of Thursday night’s debate after-party.
Omar Shaikh says about 1,000 people stayed past midnight at the event with music, a dance floor and plenty of food from vendors that stayed open. He said he "met several Congressmen, Congresswomen, ambassadors, a couple candidates. It was a little nerve-wracking at first because everyone comes at one time, but operationally we handled it really well and everyone had a great time.”
A spokesperson for Aloft Hotel, which is right next door to Fiserv Forum, says about half their hotel was packed with guests for last night’s debate. She adds they along with most hotels in the downtown area are fully booked for the convention.
Above all, the business owners feel having thousands here for debate week, is great practice for the Republican National Convention, which Milwaukee will host 11 months from now.
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