Democrats ask Tampa to bid on 2012 national convention

The Democratic National Committee has asked Tampa to submit a bid to host the party's national convention for 2012. Mayor Pam Iorio received the letter Wednesday from Virginia Gov. Tim Kane. She was noncommittal about the idea Thursday, saying the event would require significant "noncity resources.'' The Republican National Committee also invited the city to bid on its 2012 national convention in August. Representatives of Visit Tampa Bay, Hillsborough County's quasi-public tourism marketing agency, will attend an "interested cities'' meeting in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday. But there's no decision yet whether to make a proposal by the Jan. 10 deadline. The city was among three finalists for that convention in 2002, eventually losing to New York City. In 2008, Tampa was again a finalist. But Republican leaders picked Minneapolis/St. Paul, saying they were concerned about the threat of hurricanes during the September event. Tampa has never bid for a Democratic National Convention.