A Democratic Convention Explainer (by a Canadian Who’s Been There)
From August 19–22, the Democratic National Convention will be held in Chicago. At the convention, Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz will formally accept their nominations as the party’s candidates for President and Vice President. It will also be a chance for the party to showcase its election pitch to voters and contrast its presidential ticket to the Republican Party’s ticket over four nights of primetime TV coverage.
I know a little bit about these conventions. Eight years ago, I was in Philadelphia and watched Hillary Clinton become the first woman to ever accept the nomination of one of America’s major political parties. I watched the official roll call from the lawn of Independence National Historical Park, steps from where the U.S. Constitution was debated and signed. I was also at the Wells Fargo Center when she formally accepted the nomination in front of over 20,000 people in person and millions more on TV and online.
But what you see on TV during primetime coverage is actually only a fraction of what takes place during convention week. These conventions can actually be broken down into three elements: the non-partisan host city festival, the internal party convention, and the multi-day televised presidential campaign event.
Host Committee
Before a location is chosen, the Chair of the Democratic National Committee sends a letter to potential host cities asking them to consider bidding on hosting duties. For Chicago, that process began all the way back in 2021. Interestingly, cities often express interest and even put together bids to host the conventions of both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. This is possible because the city that is eventually chosen to host carries out its duties in a non-partisan manner.
Chicago has held more presidential conventions than any other city. The last time it hosted the Democratic Party’s convention was in 1996 during the re-election campaign of President Clinton and Vice President Gore. The city’s most infamous time hosting was in 1968. That year, the sitting one-term Democratic President Lyndon Johnson belatedly ended his campaign for re-election. A frontrunner, Robert F. Kennedy, was then assassinated at a campaign event. Eventually, Vice President Hubert Humphrey of Minnesota won the nomination but the convention itself was marred by protests and violence over the Vietnam War.
Chicago eventually won the 2024 bid, beating out New York City and Atlanta. This handed responsibility for the broader event to the nonprofit Chicago Host Committee (later named ‘Development Now for Chicago’). The committee, like those that came before it, was responsible for fundraising, community engagement, and drawing out benefits from the event for local businesses and organizations. Similar to the Olympics, hosting the convention is seen as a tourism and economic development opportunity.
Host City Festival
In Philadelphia, convention participants and other tourists were treated to PoliticalFest — a week’s worth of free activities to enjoy in the lead-up to and during the convention. PoliticalFest featured seven event locations across downtown Philadelphia and draped much of the downtown in bunting, presidential quotes, and other PoliticalFest advertising.
Given the city’s ties to the founding of America, existing exhibits at places like those at the National Constitution Center were highlighted. Special exhibits were added alongside them, such as the ‘Headed to the White House’ exhibit at the NCC.
Other exhibits were created specifically for this event in previously private venues, including an excellent one at the Union League’s Heritage Center. That exhibit covered the history of presidential nominating conventions held in Philadelphia and contained historical items from past races.
While most of the partisan day-time programming took place at the Philadelphia Convention Center, space was made for tourists to visit Hall F where a mock fuselage of a John F. Kennedy-era Air Force One was available to explore.
Hall F also featured a replica of a Reagan-era Oval Office as well as a second version of the presidential desk that visitors were encouraged to get behind for a souvenir photo.
My favourite element of PoliticalFest, beyond the museums and parties thrown by organizations like Politico, was the “Donkeys Around Town” scavenger hunt. Ahead of the event, a painted donkey for each state and territory was placed somewhere in Philadephia. I didn’t find all of them, but it was fun to spot them along my travels and to see the unique artworks applied to them by local artists.
The Party Convention
All of the daytime programming for the party convention was held at the Philadelphia Convention Center. In Chicago, they’ll be held at McCormick Place. This is where the ‘work’ of the week takes place. The different groups that make up the party use this time to meet and discuss party issues.
The sessions I attended — which I had access to as a volunteer — were mainly held to amp up the party membership ahead of the presidential campaign and featured speakers that would draw good attendance. These included the Women’s Caucus and the Youth Council.
This year, the DNC will be livestreaming each of the meetings for those who can’t attend in person. That schedule will be as follows:
Monday & Wednesday: Black Caucus Meeting, Hispanic Caucus Meeting, AAPI Caucus Meeting, Native American Caucus Meeting, and Ethnic Council Meeting
Tuesday & Thursday: Women’s Caucus Meeting, Disability Caucus Meeting, Youth Council Meeting, Rural Council Meeting, Veterans and Military Families Council Meeting, Poverty Council Meeting, and Interfaith Council Meeting
In addition to these meetings, delegates open the day with a delegate breakfast while the media participate in the daily morning press briefing. Delegates will also have the opportunity to purchase ‘swag’ (campaign paraphernalia like buttons and t-shirts) at the shop on-site.
Presidential Campaign Event
Technically, the televised evening programming is part of the regular convention programming. Official elements of the nominating process take place here, such as the roll call of delegates and nomination acceptance. But mostly, the evening programming is a show where the party brings out its top talent and flashiest supporters to make the Democratic case for winning the presidency.
Crowd Control
A maximum capacity crowd pours into the arena each night after arriving by packed public transit and going through several levels of security screening. In 2016, the crowd was so big that the subway line to the arena was shut down over safety concerns. Local police also erected what I estimated was a 10-foot tall fence around the perimeter of the area to keep protestors out.
Only people with credentials — like volunteers and delegates — are allowed past these checkpoints. The City of Philadelphia estimated that a total of 50,000 people poured into the city over the course of the convention, with 12,000 protestors taking part in over 60 demonstrations. Incredibly, zero arrests were made.
The Secret Service also has a role to play when it comes to on-site security. Former presidents and vice presidents often serve as keynote speakers at these conventions and their life-time Secret Service details accompany them. In addition, as was the case in 2016, sometimes a sitting president or vice president is in attendance, which greatly heightens the security threat possibility for the event.
My job during the evening portion of the event was to be the last credential checkpoint attendees saw before arriving in their seats. I was given the VIP section, which gave me the chance to watch the stage set-up work, warm-ups by musical performers like Katy Perry, pre-speech practice by guest speakers, and check out live coverage of the event from behind the news desk as each of the major networks had set up their broadcasts on our level.
A whole host of VIPs came through my checkpoint area, including Senator Bernie Sanders, Senator Elizabeth Warren, Senator Cory Booker (who did a dance for me), Speaker Nancy Pelosi, comedian Chelsea Handler, Bush advisor Karl Rove, then Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker, disgraced (and soon-to-be disgraced) again former Congressman Anthony Wiener, Jesse Jackson, Obama Digital Director Teddy Goff, journalist Dan Rather and the voice of God, Morgan Freeman, who shot me a huge smile when I asked for him to show me his credentials by name.
The Roll Call
An important element of the convention was the roll call of votes from the attending delegates. This was the process that formally nominated the ticket. This process will be different this time around as Democratic delegates already certified Harris as the party’s nominee during a virtual roll call at the start of August.
I have no inside information about what the party will do instead, but given the roll call is usually an opportunity to briefly highlight Democratic delegates from each state, I suspect they will find some other way to highlight them during the convention. It would also be an opportunity to combat Republican messaging and demonstrate that the certification was a democratic process where Harris received support from 99% of Democratic Party delegates.
Keynote Speakers
Each night of the convention programming features over a dozen speakers. However, there are always a few special guests who get lengthy speaking slots. Usually, this list includes the heads of important stakeholder organizations, some up-and-coming Democratic politicians (see Barack Obama in 2004), presidential also-rans (Bernie Sanders in 2016), prominent Democratic Caucus members, past presidents, and of course, the current ticket and potentially their family members.
In 2016, night one speakers included Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and Michelle Obama. Night two featured Nancy Pelosi, a video from Jimmy Carter, Meryl Streep, and Bill Clinton. Andra Day and Alicia Keys both performed. Night three included VP Nominee Tim Kaine, Jill Biden, and Barack Obama with a performance by Lenny Kravitz. The final day of programming famously included remarks from Khizr Khan, Chelsea Clinton, and the candidate herself, Hillary Clinton.
We still don’t have a lot of details about what the 2024 convention programming will include other than the fact that it will be led by Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison, who will hold the gavel and open and close each evening’s programming.
In addition to taking in the programming, guests in attendance will stay ‘on campus’ for the duration of the night’s programming and be able to access food from a ‘convention village’ of sorts that is set up within the security perimeter.
Speech from the Nominee
The most important moment of the entire week is when the nominee finally takes the stage and delivers a speech that highlights their background, their qualifications, and their vision for the future of America.
One of the most powerful moments I’ve ever had in political life was witnessing Hillary Clinton become the first female presidential nominee in American history, surrounded by 20,000 proud American political activists. While the hope they had for election night did not pan out, Democrats are days away from another historic nominating convention and renewed hope that this time, they may help deliver the election of the first female president in American history.
After the Convention
Despite the Herculean effort it takes to pull off the convention, Democrats will immediately hit the campaign trail again the following morning. In 2016, Clinton, her running mate, and their spouses paid a visit to Temple University the very next morning to hold a post-convention rally.
From there, it will be a sprint to Election Day. Both campaigns will try to reach every corner of America they possibly can before voters cast their ballots, prioritizing those swing states that could tip the balance in either campaign’s favour. With just 74 days left in the campaign after the final gavel sounds at the DNC, this convention and the narrative the Democrats create through it could play a deciding role in the outcome of the election. No pressure.
For those of us watching from home, especially in other countries who have no say in who wins, it should be good television. It should also serve as a four-day-long reminder that a joyful and hopeful version of politics is still on the menu so long as people get out and vote for it.
Theresa is a Canadian communications professional who served as the Director of Communications to Ontario’s Deputy Premier and an election speechwriter for former Premier Kathleen Wynne. She has attended numerous political events in the US, including the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, which saw the historic nomination of Hillary Clinton as a presidential candidate.
