Obama consoles jilted supporters

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CHARLOTTE, NC - SEPTEMBER 06: Delegates sit around a large cutout of the head of Democratic presidential candidate, U.S. President Barack Obama during the final day of the Democratic National Convention at Time Warner Cable Arena on September 6, 2012 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The DNC, which concludes today, nominated U.S. President Barack Obama as the Democratic presidential candidate 

By AFP
Posted  Thursday, September 6  2012 at  22:52

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina,

US President Barack Obama tried to make it up to thousands of supporters who will miss his big convention speech on Thursday because weather forced the event to a smaller venue.

Obama hosted a mass call with some of the jilted ticket-holders, apologizing that the event, which had been scheduled to take place in 70,000 seater Bank of America stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, had to be moved indoors.

"I just want to begin by saying how much I regret that we're not all gathering together in one place to deliver my acceptance speech tonight," he said. "I know it's disappointing."

"The problem was a safety issue. I could not ask you -- our volunteers, our law enforcement, first responders -- to subject themselves to the risk of severe thunderstorms."

The speech, capping a three-day Democratic campaign rally, will now be held in the Time Warner Cable Arena, which holds just 15,000 people.

"I know it's especially disappointing for a lot of you who worked hard to get your tickets to the event, or travelled or planned to travel a long way at your own expense to be here," Obama said.

The decision was indeed a bitter one for supporters, particularly those who did volunteer work over three days to earn a ticket, and the many thousands who waited in line for hours to secure one.

The streets around the venue were thronged with people whose tickets had been invalidated and were now wondering what to do.

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Justin, a native of Charlotte who declined to give his last name, admitted he was disappointed.

"I really wanted to be there," he told AFP. I saw him the day before he was elected president four years ago, so I was hoping to be a part of this, too. Now I don't know what I'm going to do."

Obama urged people like Justin to host watch parties.

"I hope you're still going to gather together at community watch parties that are happening not just here in Charlotte, but all across North Carolina, all across the rest of the country."

John Sawyer, an Alabama democrat, planned just that, in a decommissioned church.

"It has been de-sanctified. Otherwise a lot of our delegation would be quite uncomfortable drinking here," he told AFP.