Charlotte mayor 'hopes' city can both host RNC and follow COVID-19 health guidelines

With the Republic National Convention planned for late August in Charlotte, North Carolina, the city's mayor says the public's safety amid the coronavirus pandemic will take priority but that she hopes they can do both: follow public health guidelines and host the convention.

"We'll follow the emergency declaration because safety of people and wellness of people is the first and foremost thing we have to deal with." Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles said on ABC News' "Pandemic: What You Need to Know."

“Charlotte has a contract with the National Republican Committee to host this convention but now that we have this pandemic virus going on. We also have a mandate to follow whatever the guidelines coming from our public health directors and from our governor's office, so we’re going to hope to do both,” Lyles added.

The Republican National Convention is planned to run from Aug. 24-27. President Donald Trump is all but guaranteed to win the Republican nomination at the event as he is running virtually uncontested.

Lyle also spoke about the possibility of the city reopening, saying she's working with North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and public health officials to see when that decision will be made.

“When we have a trend of 14 days where we’ve either leveled or declining cases of the COVID-19 virus, then we can talk about how we reopen our city,” she said.

“Charlotte has the sixth busiest airport in the country. Yesterday, we saw a flight ... from JFK to Charlotte without masks and without social distancing,” she added. “We need that tourism and that business travel. But we first and foremost have to make sure that our citizens and our residents are safe and well.”