Political Insights from the Democrat National Convention, Chicago 2024.

It is undeniable that the electoral playing field has totally transformed since President Joe Biden stepped down from his re-election campaign. Following his concerning debate performance and a failed assassination attempt on Trump, it looked as though the election was being handed to the Republicans.? Despite a lot of pressure from top democrats for him to pass across the torch, there would have been equally significant pressure from those who work in Biden’s inner campaign circle for him not to step down through loyalty, maintaining the status quo or even the risk of them losing their jobs.? Predictably, once Joe Biden decided to step aside on July 21st,?Kamala Harris opted to immediately hire Barack Obama’s experienced PR guard to help her campaign rejuvenate some of the historic inspiration that occurred during the 2008 election of the first ever Black president. The surge of energy, excitement, renewed hope (and relief) showed instant results with the Harris campaign out-fundraising Trump’s by 4 times over the following month including 1.5 million new donors in the last 11 days of July alone as her donations for July surged well past $300 million.?

Some Americans I interviewed after Biden’s July 21st decision suggested, somewhat intriguingly, that the timing of Biden’s departure was perfectly planned to ensure that Kamala Harris got the call up to lead without too much complaint from within the democratic ranks as they couldn’t afford to get caught up in intense factional fighting so close to the election. These discussions brought me back to Wellington, New Zealand in 2017 when such a campaign strategy was perfectly orchestrated by the then Labour-leader Andrew Little who stepped down to allow future Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to top the ticket just 7 weeks prior to her winning the election.? Such a tactic could have gone horribly wrong, however, as occurred in 1968.? Here, ?President Lyndon Johnson pulled out of running a second term due to his ongoing support of the Vietnam war which drained heavily on his overall popularity and put forward his preferred successor VP Hubert Humphrey that led to protest and even bloodshed during the Democratic National Convention (also in Chicago) because anti-Vietnam war challenger Senator Eugene McCarthy was not considered.

Similar to 1968, protests also occurred throughout the streets of Chicago in 2024 during the convention in response to America’s support of Israel and its ongoing and brutal bombing of Gaza.? (Over 100 people have been arrested in clashes between protestors and police throughout the week.)? Interestingly, President Joe Biden in his keynote speech on the opening night of the convention specifically mentioned that the protesters lining the streets in Chicago had a point regarding the obscene numbers of those killed in Gaza and emphasized the need for an immediate ceasefire.? This concession, (despite the $20 billion earmarked in military sales to Israel moving forward into the future), was likely forced not just by the high numbers of Muslim Americans in Michigan which can sway the vital swing-state, but also keeps in mind the importance of Kamala Harris to entice the youth vote which is key to the Democrats’ overall success. To put this in context, almost 22 million Boomers [60-78 years] have passed away since the 2016 election while approximately 40.8 million Generation Z [18-27 years] have reached voting age in America representing a strong demographic shift. (If they vote.)

It was thus no surprise that Alexandra Ocasio Cortez commenced the opening speeches of the prime-time slots on the first night of the Convention.? The youngest ever elected member to the House of Representatives, she is hugely popular with the youth in general and her strongly left leaning agenda appeals to their generation’s current sensitivities, in particular her advocacy on social justice, climate change and legislative initiatives forwarding the Green New Deal.

Hillary Clinton’s speech also on Monday night was simply incredible. It must be challenging to step in front of everyone again after her historic loss to Donald Trump in 2016, but her words of encouragement towards Kamala Harris were both profound and empowering for women in general, especially given the second round of history at stake here, and how much women’s rights have been affronted upon. ?Although it’s been 104 years since women first got the right to vote in the USA via the 19th Amendment, it was as late as 1984 when the last state of Mississippi finally symbolically ratified the Amendment.? Time is well overdue for a woman to finally become Commander in Chief particularly given Republicans attempts to further erode reproductive rights. This has led to consequences such as the harsh legal penalties that abusive men can impose on women if they escape to another state to have an abortion, or even women being sent to prison under ‘foetal assault laws’ for having a miscarriage.? (There have been 1,200 such cases in the past 15 years.) ??This is a cause for which Kamala has strongly fought for throughout her legal and political career.

Doug Emhoff (Kamala’s husband) also spoke on Monday night exposing a genuine and heart-warming side to the Vice President who despite her insanely busy working schedule as California’s top public prosecutor, Attorney General, Senator and later Vice President was viewed as the rock in the family and fueled by compassion and empathy for others especially as she helped raised his kids after his first divorce.? “The connection was so intimate with my kids Ella and Cole, they soon started calling her ‘Momala’.”?

Tuesday’s highlights of the Convention were definitely Michelle and Barack Obama whose speeches on Tuesday night had the room erupting. ?Michelle’s telling statement; “For years, Donald Trump did everything in his power to try make people fear us. His narrow, limited view of the world made him feel threatened by the existence of two hardworking, highly educated, successful people who happened to be Black.? Who is going to tell him that the job he is currently seeking might be one of those “Black jobs?”

It is so inspiring to have those two back in the fray again to keep the voting Democrats motivated especially in places like Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania where, as Barack Obama reiterated, it could come down to as little as a few hundred votes to see who wins those States the race is so tight overall.

Wednesday evening was opened up by Hakeem Jeffries‘ who as the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives portrayed his intellectual prowess and street-smart New York vigour making his case for Kamala Harris with rhythmical resonance.? “Trump’s like that boyfriend you dumped 4 years ago but still keeps circling the block trying to get back in a relationship with you.’?? Pete Buttigieg, Secretary of Transport in Biden’s Cabinet who was also being considered for Kamala Harris’ running mate also starred on the evening with his intellectual eloquence stating; “JD Vance is one of those guys who thinks if you don’t live the life that he has in mind for you, then you don’t count. Someone who said that if you don’t have kids, you have, quote, ‘no physical commitment to the future of this country.’” Buttigieg continued to enormous applause, “When I was deployed to Afghanistan, I didn’t have kids then.? Many of the men and women who went outside the wire with me didn’t have kids either, but let me tell you, our commitment to the future of this country was pretty physical.”

But the night belonged to Tim Walz in his first major speech at the DNC as the chosen running mate of Kamala Harris.? The two term Governor for Minnesota was a 24 year veteran of the National guard where he signed up at age 17, a popular school teacher who coached the football team to the state finals, (as well as the local basketball team) and despite entering politics later in life was a 6 time representative on the House of Representatives in the previously 6 term Republican held purple state.? As a hunter who passed background check reform for gun users and his state of Minnesota becoming the first in the country to pass abortion protections after the overthrowing of Roe v Wade he excels in communicating a progressive message to centrists and is the perfect foil to the Republicans as he encapsulates many of their values without all the sleeze and con-artistry that the Trump Vance ticket represents.? He is like Ted Lasso – without all the dance moves, and was quick to condemn the ‘weirdness’ of Trump and Vance’s MAGA movement and their disturbing 2025 Agenda which? “as a country we simply didn’t ask for.” ?His emotional and passionate ‘pep-talk’ had the Democrat delegates fully absorbed especially with lines like: “They like to take away books from our kids’ while we supply them with lunch and breakfasts”, and “It’s the 4th quarter. We’re down a field goal, but we’re on offense. We’re driving down the field. And boy, we have the right team to win this. Kamala Harris is tough. She’s experienced. And she’s ready.”

The final night of the convention, as is convention, belonged to Kamala herself who set the inclusive tone for her presidency by laying out her background and exactly how she wants to govern.? “On behalf of every American regardless of race, party or agenda or the language your grandmother speaks, on behalf of my mother and everyone who has set out on their own unlikely journey, on behalf of those 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, I accept your nomination to be President of the United States of America.”

She did not shy away from the most hotly anticipated and potentially fraught topic of Gaza explicitly providing a forceful defense of Israel and its right to defend itself, but simultaneously stating that a ceasefire needs to occur immediately, the senseless killings of civilians put to an end along with the return of hostages and humanitarian aid delivered as well as calling to build up the Palestinian state.?? “Palestinians need to also have dignity, freedom, security and self-determination.”? This led to one of the Convention’s loudest applauses, (yet whether this could be construed as purely lip-service is yet to be seen), especially as she still forcefully laid out her stated opposition to Russia’s leader Putin and North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un as well as the violent movements and terroristic aims of Hamas and Hezbollah under the Islamic Republic of Iran that America needs to condemn rather than turn a blind eye to (or even support) as the former Trump presidency illustrated aligning with the aforementioned autocrats.? Doubling down on Biden's Israel policy could lead to further growth of the uncommitted movement given that most people with a moral conscience will see that America is still on the wrong side of a genocide, which could inhibit the Obama voting coalition Kamala Harris is trying to stitch together. Whether she continues on this trajectory through to November or alters her foreign policy stance given the threat of losing Michigan during the election is still to be seen.

Nonetheless, her message ultimately appealed to the middle class, and distanced herself from Trump’s privilege by outlining how she has made it to the top through hard work and struggling like the rest of us. Highlighting how she worked in McDonalds in her early days to get through law school, deciding to become a prosecutor after helping out a friend who had been sexually assaulted, and taking on the corporate banks, (where she secured a 20 billion settlement after they ripped off so many people during the subprime mortgage crisis of 2009).? Her work also targeted the price gouging by pharmaceutical companies (for example casting the final vote to pass policy capping the price of insulin to over 60s to $30 a month), as well as alluding to the violent criminal offenders, and drug cartels she has taken down to highlight her tough on crime credentials.? Her speeches over the past month have always presented herself as the prosecutor standing against the convicted felon that is Trump and it will be interesting to see where the uncommitted voting block will decide to go - with her overall inclusive message or his.? Looking at the pamphlets coming through the mail from the Trump campaign and the way they are brilliantly crafted to capture the centre and independent vote rather than spewing extreme right-wing policy and vitriol that underpins his campaigning style shows that both teams know exactly who needs to be convinced over the next 74 days.? However it all plays out in the ensuing weeks, it will be an unnervingly close affair in all the battleground states of Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Georgia, North Carolina, Arizona, and Nevada.