A hurricane and possibly Ron Paul-inspired shift from the traditional Thursday, writes The Hill's Alicia Cohn:
Delegates will vote for a presidential nominee on Monday, the first day of the Republican National Convention, a break with the tradition of holding the roll-call vote the day before the presumptive nominee is scheduled to speak.
Mitt Romney will still give his acceptance speech on Thursday, according to The New York Times. That speech will be broadcast live by the major TV networks, but Monday's events, which also include a speech by Ann Romney, will not.
There are a number of reasons why Republicans might want to lock in Romney's formal nomination early in the week. Hurricane Isaac remains a concern. And many supporters of Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas), who has not officially dropped out of the GOP presidential race, will be in town for Paul's rally on Sunday. Paul has denied he has plans to disrupt the convention and has warned his supporters against it, but the Times indicates that Republican officials are concerned there will be interruptions during the vote.
