A global computer outage Friday left many who had attended the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee scrambling to reschedule canceled flights.
For those who made the trip from Polk County, that just meant more time to bask in the afterglow of what they considered an exalted gathering.
Lakeland’s Ed Shoemaker, state committeeman for the Republican Party from Polk County, attended as one of two voting delegates, along with State Committeewoman Amilee Stuckey of Lake Wales. Their votes helped seal the official confirmation of former President Donald Trump and Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, as the Republicans’ presidential ticket.
“The atmosphere was just electrifying,” Shoemaker said.
Shoemaker hails from Ohio, and he compared the feeling inside Fiserv Forum to that of an Ohio State football game against rival Michigan — except that everyone was cheering for the same side.
“That’s what it felt like,” he said. “We’re all on the same team, with one goal in mind, and that's just retaining our freedoms and our future for everybody.”
Florida Rep. Jennifer Canady, R-Lakeland, joined many other elected officials from the Sunshine State at the convention, including State Rep. Josie Tomkow, R-Polk City, and Sen. Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula.
“The convention was extremely well run, positive, and brought the party together,” Canady said Friday by text message.
She added: “The Republican National Convention showed America the choice we have in November. The Trump-Vance ticket is a vote for strength, unity, and a focus on doing good things to help everyday Americans.”
Asked why she considered it important to attend, Canady replied: “It's important to say 'thank you' to the hard-working Florida grassroots volunteers and to demonstrate that the party is united behind Trump-Vance.”
Two alternate delegates from Polk County, Hardam Tripathi and Kat Gates-Skipper, also traveled to Milwaukee for the convention.
Tripathi, 34, said by phone from Milwaukee that his voice was ragged after meeting thousands of people during the convention. One of those was Vance, whom he engaged in conversation.
Tripathi said he called his parents Friday and morning and cried about the opportunity he had received.
“I said I’m so thankful, being an immigrant, and having the opportunity to be up here,” he said. “It’s an honor. It’s a privilege.”
Stuckey took time off from her campaign for the Florida House in District 48 to make the trip to Wisconsin. She was occupied with scheduling a flight Friday and not available for an interview. Stuckey posted Facebook updates throughout the week, reporting on the prime location given to Florida's delegates.
"I am finally seated down on the floor in the Great State of Florida section, which is front and center!!" she wrote on Monday. "I didn't get here early enough to get on the front row lol. But I'm very close. So excited to represent Imperial Polk County and the Florida delegation."
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Shoemaker, 64, did not face the same post-convention inconvenience as most delegates, having driven from Lakeland with his wife, Tonya.
As he prepared to depart his hotel Friday morning, Shoemaker frequently uttered the word that had become the unofficial theme of the convention: “unity.” Though American politics remain highly polarized, GOP officials sought to downplay divisions following the assassination attempt on Trump at a Pennsylvania rally two days before the convention began.
“I just felt like that we had people there that had many differences, and we're unified despite those differences,” Shoemaker said. “We’re working together. I felt very positive, let's put it that way — not necessarily that we're overly confident or anything like that. That has nothing to do with it. But I felt as though we're all on the same page. I felt more unity than I have felt for many years.”
Many who attended the four-night event wore white bandages over their right ears in an expression of solidarity with Trump, whose ear was grazed by a bullet during the shooting in Pennsylvania. Shoemaker said he did not engage in that symbolic gesture.
Shoemaker had been scheduled to attend the Republican Convention in 2020, but the traditional gathering gave way to mostly recorded events amid the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Shoemaker said that he expected to see more protesters around the convention site in downtown Milwaukee. He and his wife encountered a group of demonstrators one day while returning to their hotel from a luncheon hosted by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody.
“One protester got in my wife's face, and my wife just looked at him and said, ‘Well, God bless you,’” Shoemaker said.
Participants endured extremely tight security, Shoemaker said, having to pass through multiple checkpoints even within the perimeter of the convention. He described seeing protective snipers stationed on rooftops.
Many Republicans left the convention feeling confident that Trump will retake the White House after a four-year absence. Shoemaker said he shared that outlook, to a point.
“I don't think that we're taking anything for granted,” he said. “I just think that we see a lot of work ahead of us still.”
Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on X @garywhite13.
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