President Barack Obama, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney to visit campus

United States President Barack Obama discusses energy possibilities for the future at the University of Miami Field House on Feb. 23. Marlena Skrobe//Photo Editor
United States President Barack Obama discusses energy possibilities for the future at the University of Miami Field House on Feb. 23. File Photo

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama will speak at the BankUnited Center Fieldhouse on Sept. 19 and 20, respectively. Their visits are part of Univision broadcasts, and will be aired on the Spanish-language station after each event. Univision, a TV station with studios and operations in Doral, will conduct the event in a question and answer format, with questions asked in Spanish and candidates answering in English. Translations will be provided when necessary.

UM Young and College Democrats and UM College Republicans, as well as other undergraduate political organizations, will have initial access to the limited number of student tickets.

All other students interested in attending each event will be required to enter a ticket lottery. Students will receive an email with specifics about how to enter Tuesday, and must complete the entry page by 5 p.m. Wednesday. Winners will be notified by email on Thursday.

This will mark President Barack Obama’s second visit to the University of Miami. Earlier this year, the president spoke at the same venue to address the United States’ energy policy. Before his speech, the president received a tour of the college, as well as a demo of an in-house project focused on energy efficiency.

On Feb. 20, The Miami Hurricane announced that President Obama would be visiting campus Feb. 23. At around 6 p.m. Feb. 21, more than 900 people waited to receive tickets. Students lined up outside the University Center’s Ticketmaster window nearly two days before the event.

When the box office opened Wednesday morning, those who were in line by 6:30 a.m. definitely received a ticket, said Joshua Brandfon, the associate director of student activities.

Brandfon said there was a waitlist for tickets, and more than 100 students signed up.

“We begged for every ticket we could get,” President Donna E. Shalala said.

The event was solely open to UM students.

The decision to host the event in the Fieldhouse and to limit the attendees to students was made by the White House, which wanted to keep the event small. Shalala said she tried to convince Obama and the White House to host the event in the BankUnited Center.

Additional event details will be provided to ticket holders closer to the event date. For more information on the ticketing process, contact the Department of Student Activities at 305-284-6399.

Ticket schedule:

  • Tuesday: Emails will be sent to currently enrolled students, with a link to enter the ticket lotteries
  • Wednesday, 5 p.m.: Deadline to enter the ticket lottery
  • Thursday: Lottery winners will be notified by email
  • Monday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.: Lottery winners can pick up their tickets at the UC
  • Sept. 18, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.: Lottery winners can pick up their tickets at the UC
  • Sept. 19, noon: Lottery winner ticket pickup deadline
  • Sept. 19, 1 p.m.: Alternates will be notified by email, and tickets pick up will begin immediately.
  • Sept. 19, 6 p.m., Alternate pickup date closes.