DNC Kicks Off: Day 1- Pandering, Protests, & 'POTUS'

Starting Monday, Democrats will hold their long-anticipated national convention during which they'll formally nominate their presidential candidate and outline to voters their vision for the future.

The Democratic National Convention (DNC) will formally lock in the presidential and vice presidential nominees for both major parties.

Former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), were nominated at the Republican National Convention last month.

Vice President Kamala Harris, meanwhile, clinched enough delegates to win her party’s nomination at the beginning of August during a virtual roll vote that left little room for last minute dissenters.

She’s expected to accept the nomination, along with her chosen running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, in speeches delivered on the final two nights of the event.

This is set to be a very different convention than voters expected at the beginning of the election cycle, when President Joe Biden led the ticket for Democrats.

However, a pressure campaign forced Biden out of the candidacy after an underwhelming debate performance shock up the political landscape.

Since Harris took over the ticket, Democrats have enjoyed a boost in polling. Still, the stakes are high for Harris and the Democrats, who will need to put on a united front after months of division within the party.

Here’s what to expect during the second major party convention of the year.

When and Where

The DNC will be held from Monday, Aug. 19, to Thursday, Aug. 22, in Chicago.

Democrats have a long history of holding their conventions in the windy city—this will be the 12th time since 1864 that the convention has been hosted there.

The last DNC to be held in Chicago was in 1996, when President Bill Clinton was easily re-nominated by his party.

The main event this year is being held at the United Center, a convention center that doubles as the home stadium for the Chicago Bulls basketball team and the Chicago Blackhawks hockey team.

Around 50,000 attendees are expected, including the party’s approximately 5,000 delegates. Like most major political events, it won’t be open to the public.

However, it will stream on a variety of platforms, according to the party.

In addition to the normal media coverage of the event each night, voters will also be able to watch the convention online, courtesy of C-Span.

The event will also be streamed in its entirety via Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube using the vertical style popularized by those apps.

Additional delegate-only events that are not streamed to the public will be hosted at the nearby McCormick Center.

Speakers

The convention will feature speeches from an array of Democrat notables.

Biden will be among the first speakers. He’s expected to call into the convention via video.

As is tradition at these events, neither Walz nor Harris are expected to speak until the final two days: Walz is likely to speak on the second to last day of the convention, and Harris on the final night.

Speaker are expected to appear according to this schedule:

Aug. 19: 

• President Joe Biden
• Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
• Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker

Aug. 20: 

• Former President Barack Obama

Aug. 21: 

• Former President Bill Clinton
• Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz

Aug. 22: 

• Vice President Kamala Harris

Time and Day TBD:

• Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson
• Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.)
• Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.)
• Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.)

Platform

During the convention, Democrats will also formally adopt their party’s draft platform.

Released in July, the draft platform mentions Trump dozens of times.

It also details Democrats’ position on an array of issues.

It reiterates Democrats’ demands for a federal codification of Roe v. Wade—unsurprising as abortion is one of Democrats’ strongest polling issues.

Economically, there’s not much in the platform that’s especially new: it calls for the federal minimum wage to be raised to $15 an hour by 2026, policies to increase the affordability of childcare and healthcare, and making the Child Tax Credit permanent.

Additionally, the platform repeats Democrats’ long-held demands for higher taxation of very wealthy individuals and corporations.

The draft platform also calls for securing the southern border while providing a “pathway to citizenship” for the millions of illegal immigrants in the country.

However, this platform, released in early July, hasn’t been updated since Biden dropped out.

Now, hours before the convention kicks off, it still lists Biden as the party’s candidate.

As is usually the case at major party conventions, the platform will be discussed, debated, amended, and formally ratified during the convention.

Protests

While Democrats seek to project an image of unity, there’s one factor that’s outside of the party’s control: expected protests from interest groups on the left.

Namely, protestors are expected to move full steam ahead with protests originally planned against Biden.

One protest, organized as the “March on the DNC 2024,” will feature a group of around 200 left wing-groups, and could potentially number into the tens of thousands—raising concerns about event security.

Specifically, the protestors are demanding that the DNC and Harris change their stance on Israel, calling for the United States to “stand with Palestine” and “end U.S. aid to Israel,” along with a laundry list of other left-wing demands.

The event already has the highest possible federal security classification.

Security for the event will be handled by a coalition of local, state, and federal law enforcement, including the Secret Service.

Despite the challenges, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and local police have maintained that the event will be secure.