2012 Democratic National Convention papers

The 2012 Democratic National Convention was held in Charlotte from September 3-6 at Time Warner Cable Arena (now Spectrum Center). The DNC selected Charlotte as the host city in February 2011 over three other finalists: Cleveland, Minneapolis and St. Louis. Over the course of four days, 35,000 visitors descended on uptown Charlotte, including delegates, politicians and members of the media. Notable figures such as Julian Castro, Michelle Obama, Elizabeth Warren, Bill Clinton, Joe Biden and Barack Obama gave speeches at the convention that were viewed by a national and international audience. On September 6, 2012, President Obama accepted the Democratic Party's nomination of him for president. At the time, the Democratic National Convention was the single largest event in Charlotte's history and had an economic impact of $163.6 million.

Dan Murrey served as the Executive Director of the Charlotte Host Committee. In this role, he established a local nonprofit called New American Ciy. which was responsible for raising money for the convention and hosting events to show off and promote the city of Charlotte. He was born in Pulaski, Tennessee and attended Davidson College, where he received his undergraduate degree in religion. Subsequently, Murray enrolled in Harvard Medical School where he received two graduate degrees in 1992. In 1997, after completing his orthopedic surgery residency at Vanderbilt, he moved to Charlotte for a spine surgery fellowship at Carolinas Medical Center. He later joined Charlotte Orthopedic Specialists and helped lead the merger of that organization with Miller Orthopaedic Group, which created OrthoCarolina in 2005. In 2008, he was elected to serve on the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners, where he fought for increased funding and better management of social services. In 2011, Mayor Anthony Foxx asked Murrey to chair Charlotte's host committee for the convention. He accepted and led the city through a very successful convention that increased Charlotte's profile across the country and ended up being the greatest net positive economic impact for a single event in Charlotte's history.

Sources: https://www.charlottemagazine.com/dan-murrey-preps-charlotte-for-dnc/; https://www.charlottecentercity.org/democratic-national-convention-creates-lasting-impact-on-charlotte-region/