See All the Highlights From the Democratic National Convention
Kamala Harris already holds the second-highest job in the land, but on Night 4 of the 2024 Democratic National Convention, she took the opportunity to introduce herself to the American people as her party’s nominee for president. “The path that led me here in recent weeks was no doubt unexpected. But I’m no stranger to unlikely journeys,” Harris said, recalling her unique trajectory to the United Center stage. In this election, she said, America has a “chance to chart a new way forward,” later leading the Democratic faithful in a chant that’s become a steady refrain all week in Chicago: “We are not going back.”
What Will We Remember From the 2024 Democratic National Convention?
The Democrats have gone from a political party fronted by Joe Biden, a man with decades of service who’s coming to the end of his career, to one that’s putting young, vibrant rising stars onstage, says Vanity Fair editor in chief Radhika Jones. “You see it in the fashion; you hear it in the voices; you hear it in the variety of backgrounds.” The message is clear, she says: “This is a party that has a future."
Jones and VF contributing editor Ta-Nehisi Coates, who has been in Chicago this week, were on the latest episode of Inside the Hive and discussed the choreography by the Democrats at the convention and the limits of the big tent the party has projected as a pro-democracy coalition. Coates reported on the conflict at the center of the DNC this week, with no Palestinian American getting a slot onstage and uncommitted delegates protesting around the United Center, emphatically calling for a ceasefire, an end to the war in Gaza, and an arms embargo on Israel. “There is a contradiction at the heart of this convention right now, and simply put, the contradiction is: You have a candidate at the head of the ticket who was only made possible by the defeat of American apartheid,” says Coates. “At the same time, part of an administration that backs what I think—and again, I’ll get on my soapbox—can be fairly called an apartheid regime.”
The two also talked about the magnitude of having Kamala Harris lead a major party ticket and what it means for the future. Coates says he can’t imagine another presidential cycle without a really serious contender who’s not white and also probably not male. “The consequences of a loss for the country are also potentially deeply historic,” says Jones. “And so the pressure on her is unbelievable, I think. And it is hard to be a first, and that’s what she is. And that’s what she would be.”
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A Certain Ex-President Is Struggling to Accept Kamala Harris's Rise
In a series of characteristically deranged Truth Social posts that began by criticizing Kamala Harris for saying “too many” thank-yous “too rapidly,” Donald Trump last night claimed Harris “will take us into a Nuclear World War III”; “HAS LED US INTO FAILING NATION STATUS”; talked about her childhood too much; “IS A RADICAL MARXIST”; caused October 7; and is laughed at by “the Tyrants.” He also told his followers, “Walz was an ASSISTANT Coach, not a COACH,” and at one point asked, “IS SHE TALKING ABOUT ME?”
Then he called in to Fox News, which saw the Chernobyl-level meltdown continue in real time.
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The Lake Wobegon Problem
Garrison Keillor, the former Minnesota Public Radio figure who still travels the country doing shows, has hosted fundraising at his home for Tim Walz. Now, he has observations on Walz, Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, JD Vance, and what midwesterners find appealing in a candidate.
Scenes From the 2024 DNC
After chronicling last month’s Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Bruce Gilden headed to Chicago to cover the state of the Democratic Party. His striking photos of convention-goers, including prominent Democrats like Chuck Schumer, Jesse Jackson, Stacey Abrams, Kathy Hochul, Eric Adams, Al Sharpton, and Terry McAuliffe, capture the exuberance within a political party that, at times, transformed the United Center into one giant dance party—like when Lil Jon joined a raucous roll-call vote, Stevie Wonder, John Legend and Sheila E performed, or as Beyoncé’s “Freedom” blared while the balloons dropped.
The star power on display was just one of the differences between the two conventions; another was the sea of “USA” signs at the DNC, which presented a more unifying message than the “Mass Deportation Now!” placards waved around at the RNC. The inclusive, forward-looking spirit, overall, was a far cry from Trump’s grim vision of America.
The Power of Pelosi
“Nancy Pelosi's DNC 2024 speech wasn’t splashy, it wasn’t rousing, and it wasn’t even totally necessary. The point was perhaps to publicly extol Biden after—reportedly, if not admittedly—shanking him. The speech was a flex of tightly controlled unity rather than pomp. She speaks softly, and she carries the biggest stick. And her goal now is simple: to make sure that Donald Trump never steps foot in the White House again.”
Gaming Out the Homestretch
Well, that was fun. But Kamala Harris and Tim Walz still have a long, three-month road ahead.
Chris Smith reports on how the two Democrats are gaming out the homestretch, from travel plans to media sit-downs to mammoth digital ad spends.
“Will Smith once said that if you have enough good fucking days, you’ll have a good fucking life,” Bakari Sellers, a Democratic strategist and former South Carolina legislator who is close to Harris’s campaign, tells Smith. “This campaign is about stringing together as many good fucking days as we possibly can. What Kamala Harris is trying to do is win the day.”
Kamala Harris Makes Her Case as Uniter-in-Chief
Kamala Harris promised to chart a “new way forward” for the nation as she accepted the Democratic nomination for president Thursday, the final night of a star-studded and amped-up convention in Chicago. “With this election, our nation has a precious, fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism, and divisive battles of the past,” the vice president told an arena crowd packed with enthusiastic supporters. “I will be a president who unites us around our highest aspirations. A president who leads and listens. Who is realistic, practical, and has common sense. And always fights for the American people.”
The standing-room-only crowd erupted when Harris took the United Center stage. Even those who spilled out into the concourse cheered wildly, with supporters waving KAMALA signs as they squeezed together around small televisions to watch the vice president deliver the biggest, most consequential speech of her career. “The future is always worth fighting for,” she said. “We are not going back.”
The DNC was, in part, a celebration of its past, with rousing speeches by the Obamas, the Clintons, and of course Biden, whose address on the convention’s opening night was something of a swan song for a presidency and a decades-long career in public office. But it also marked the beginning of a new chapter for the Democratic party: “I see a nation ready to move forward,” Harris said in her speech, “ready for the next step in the incredible journey that is America.”
Kamala Harris Accepts the Democratic Presidential Nomination in Chloé
For Kamala Harris, the Democratic National Convention ended like it began: in a Chloé suit.
On Thursday, Vice President Harris accepted the Democratic presidential nomination in a bespoke navy grain de poudre wool suit and a matching crepe de chine lavaliere blouse from the French fashion house.
And just like the bespoke brown grain de poudre wool suit and white crepe de chine lavaliere blouse she wore to kick things off on Monday, the look was designed by creative director Chemena Kamali for Chloé.
Dispatch from the Balloon-Filled Floor
It used to be a tradition on convention floors, after a nominating speech, to use lit cigarettes to pop the balloons when they fell. Now, on the United Center floor, everyone is getting hit every few seconds with huge balloons, making it both comedic and slightly impossible for TV reporters to tape their hits.
Popping the Joy Balloon
Kamala Harris's abbreviated campaign for the presidency has been mostly centered on bringing the joy, but, tonight, Harris was serious and touched on a lot of different of sobering issues like abortion rights, foreign policy and the economy. She introduced herself to Americans by recalling lessons from her mother. She also made substantive attacks at her opponent, Donald Trump, detailing what he might do if he were reelected.
Kamala Harris Is Bold On Abortion
Kamala Harris didn’t mince words when talking about abortion tonight.
The Democratic presidential nominee recalled the conversations she’s had around the country with those who have been directly impacted by the overturning of Roe v. Wade and the subsequent state bans that quickly followed.
Harris recalled horror stories of women miscarrying in parking lots, getting sepsis while waiting for care, surviving sexual violence only to be forced to carry to term. And, she talked about how the country got to a place where those situations are happening.
“Donald Trump hand-picked members of the United States Supreme Court to take away reproductive freedom,” she said. “And now he brags about it.”
“Understand,” Harris continued, “he is not done.”
Her tone feels much firmer than that of her White House partner Joe Biden, who in the past has had a hard time even saying the word “abortion.”
“We're Not Going Back”
“Our nation, with this election, has a precious, fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism, and divisive battles of the past,” said Vice President Kamala Harris, while accepting her party nomination at the DNC. It's “a chance,” she added, “to chart a new way forward.”
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Democrats Use Plainspoken Language to Widen the Tent
Joy, decency, freedom—we heard those three words over and over during this convention. Former president Bill Clinton called Kamala Harris the "president of joy." Former Republican Representative Adam Kinzinger said, “I am proud to be in the trenches with you as part of this sometimes awkward alliance that we have to defend truth, democracy and decency." And then there was Tim Walz, the smalltown coach straight out of the Friday Night Lights mold, who promised: “No matter who you are, Kamala Harris is going to stand up and fight for your freedom to live the life that you want to lead because that’s what we want for ourselves."
In her acceptance speech, Harris recalled her own mother telling her, “Never do anything half-assed!” Pretty much every DNC speaker this week used this same plainspoken all-American vernacular, scrubbed of anything that could be mistaken for “woke” or elite language. The language at the DNC was pitched at the same kind of level as the World Series or America’s Got Talent, meeting all kinds of Americans where they are. The DNC’s TV ratings are actually higher than both, with an average of 20 million people watching each night so far this week. The convention was a political reality show positing a new, inclusive monoculture and implicitly framing MAGA as an extreme counterculture, out of step with broadly shared values of most Americans.
Making Hay of the Bay
I'm standing with the California Delegation on the floor now, and everyone erupted when Harris mentioned the East Bay, and the montage leading into her speech opened with an Oakland highway sign. There's been a running subplot here of defiant embrace of Oakland, which often gets depicted nationally as a symbol of civic decline. It's going be a mini-theme running through the whole election.
Kamala Harris Accepts Democratic Nomination
“On behalf of the people, on behalf of every American regardless of party, race, gender, or the language your grandmother speaks, on behalf of my mother and everyone who has ever set out on their own unlikely journey, on behalf of Americans like the people I grew up with, people who work hard, chase their dreams, and look out for one another, on behalf of everyone whose story could only be written in the greatest nation on earth,” Kamala Harris said Thursday night. “I accept your nomination to be president of the United States.”
Kamala Harris Says Her Mom Told Her to “Never Do Anything Half-Assed"
Kamala Harris, speaking lovingly about her background, the neighborhood she grew up in, and the advice her mom gave her, told the United Center audience that her mother taught her to never complain. Instead, Harris her mom told a young Kamala to “do something.”“And,” Harris continued, “she also taught us, never do anything half-assed!”
Crawling Back Like a Dog
Somebody just realized he needs to win Georgia. Moments before Kamala Harris took the stage at the DNC, Donald Trump’s X account—because, come on, we all know he didn’t personally write something like this—posted a groveling note about Brian Kemp, the popular GOP governor of Georgia whom Trump has repeatedly insulted for not capitulating to his demands to help overturn the 2020 election.
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Harris and Emhoff Have Many Things To Celebrate
“Happy anniversary, Dougie,” Kamala Harris says at the start of her speech. Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff happen to also be celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary tonight.
