GOP supporter plans busy days, starry nights in Minnesota

William D. McKinney, a political activist from Dedham, will spend nights in a tent during the GOP convention in the Twin Cities. (David Kamerman/Globe Staff)

When other delegates to the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul are settling in to their downtown hotels after a night of partying, William D. McKinney will be rolling out his sleeping bag in a tent at a Boy Scout campground a half-hour drive from the Twin Cities.

For the fourth straight GOP national convention, the veteran political activist from Dedham will be known as the frugal delegate who spends his nights in a tent under the stars.

"I enjoy the atmosphere," said McKinney, 39, an assistant scoutmaster with a Westwood troop and an Eagle Scout himself. "It definitely is a little different. I've offered to have other people go with me, but no one's taken me up on it."

In 2004, when the Republicans gathered in New York City, McKinney stayed at a Scout camp on Staten Island. He took public transportation, which included a ferry ride to the convention in Manhattan. "It's not only cheap to camp, you really experience the city more," McKinney said.

He also camped at the 2000 Republican convention in Philadelphia and the 1996 convention in San Diego. In addition to serving as an assistant scoutmaster, McKinney is on the governing board of the Boston Minuteman Council of the Boy Scouts of America. As a scouting official, McKinney can stay at Boy Scout campgrounds anywhere. Although he is frugal, McKinney still enjoys a good time. He'll attend receptions and parties at night and do all of the scheduled delegate activities during the day.

"For me, camping at the convention is just a place to sleep," he said.

He is an alternate convention delegate this year, elected as a supporter of former governor Mitt Romney, who won the Massachusetts Republican primary.

McKinney, a former commissioner of the Metropolitan District Commission, now works as a private management recruiter. In 2006, he ran in a special election for an open seat in the state House of Representatives. He lost in the Republican primary to Douglas Obey of Westwood. Obey and Democratic candidate Stephen Bilafer of Dedham both lost in the final to Paul McMurtry of Dedham, who ran as an independent but switched to Democrat after the election. McKinney said he has no plans to seek elective office again.

As for the national party, McKinney said he likes John McCain, even though Romney was his first choice for the presidency. "I'm happy to support Senator McCain. It would be great if he chose Mitt Romney as his running mate, but we probably won't know that until the convention." The delegates have not yet been given a schedule of activities at the convention, but McKinney said he plans to attend as many events as he can.

"It's a lot of fun at the conventions," said McKinney. "You get to see a lot of people, not just from Massachusetts but from all over the country."

Convention delegates have to pay their own way to the festivities, and McKinney likes to save money. He is using frequent flier miles to go to Minnesota. He will have to pay for a rental car to drive to the campground, but he needs a car anyway because after the convention he wants to go to Milwaukee to watch his brother compete in a triathlon.

Since the 2004 convention, there has been one very important change in his life: He is now married. And that means his nights of camping at conventions could be numbered. His wife, Lauren, is not attending the convention, but if she does in the future, McKinney says he'll get them a room.

"Her attitude is, 'Go ahead and do it,' but she has no interest in camping," McKinney said.