Everything You Need to Know About the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago

After four action-packed days, the Democratic National Convention concluded on Thursday, August 22, with Democratic politicians, delegates, and enthusiastic observers gathering in Chicago to shore up their party’s platform and formally nominate Kamala Harris for president.

Below, catch up on everything you may have missed from this year’s convention.

Where was the Democratic National Convention held?

The events at this year’s Democratic National Convention, which ran from August 19 through August 22, were split between the United Center and McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois. There were also a number of third-party events and other goings-on held around the city.

Who spoke at the Democratic National Convention?

Something of an all-star political lineup was assembled for the 2024 Democratic National Convention. On Monday, Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Joe Biden helped launch the week’s events; former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama then spoke on Tuesday, as did former President Jimmy Carters’s grandson Jason Carter—representing his nearly 100-year-old grandfather—and our very own Jack Schlossberg.

Wednesday brought speeches from Bill Clinton, Hakeem Jeffries, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, Pete Buttigieg, Oprah Winfrey, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, and Democratic vice presidential nominee and Minnesota governor Tim Walz. Finally, Vice President Harris closed out the show with her nomination acceptance speech on Thursday.

Were there protests at the Democratic National Convention?

A long history of political protest and activism surrounds the Democratic National Convention, and this year’s event followed that tradition: A March on the DNC took place on August 19 to protest Democratic support for Israel, mass incarceration and deportation, and a host of other hot-button issues. (Protest groups had previously accused the city of Chicago of blocking their ability to put up stages or platforms or use sound equipment during the convention.)

What did I miss?

Read on for some highlights from the week:

• President Joe Biden closed out the first night by discussing his term, his political career more broadly, and looking ahead. Biden praised his VP and declared that he was more excited about the country’s future than he was when he was first elected to the Senate.
• Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, and first lady Jill Biden all took to the stage to endorse Harris, and remind the audience of the issues at stake during the next election.
• Harris made an appearance herself, surprising everyone—apparently including her husband and her running mate.

• The ceremonial roll-call, which reaffirmed Harris as the nominee, proved a star-studded event. Eva Longoria, Sean Astin, Wendell Pierce, and Spike Lee all appeared on behalf of their home states, as did Lil’ Jon—who performed a surprise (DNC-friendly) rendition of “Turn Down for What” and “Get Low.”
• Emceeing the roll-call was DJ Cassidy, who brought his expert bar mitzvah-hype man energy to the DNC stage.
• Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff charmed the audience (who waved “DOUG” signs) with his humor, nerdiness, sentimentality, and unwavering support for his wife.
• Former first lady Michelle Obama took the stage, kicking off her speech by remembering her late mother. She later encouraged voters to stand up for what they know is right, decent, and human. “We cannot be our own worst enemies,” she said. In an urgent call to action, she led the crowd at the United Center in a hearty chant of “Do something!”
• In an invigorating address, former President Obama called Harris someone who will get up every single day and fight for the American people. He also lauded Joe Biden’s empathy and resilience. “I am proud to call him my president and I am even prouder to call him my friend.”
• Obama warned that it will be a tight race in a divided country. Undecided voters, he said, should ask who will be able to do the most for them and their families.
• In a stern dad moment, Obama admonished the crowd for booing Trump. “Do not boo,” he said. “Vote!”
• Obama applauded both Harris and Walz’s records and virtues. “When everybody gets a fair shot, we’re all better off.”
• The former president spoke to specific issues like immigration, affordable housing, and pathways to the middle class.

• Wednesday‘s speeches were united under the theme “A Fight for Our Freedom.” Project 2025 was a focus, as was January 6th; retired US Capitol police officer Aquilino Gonell recalled how his military service did not prepare him for the insurrection.
• Stevie Wonder addressed the crowd before his performance of “Higher Ground.” “We must choose courage over complacency,” he said. “The choice is clear.”
• It was another celebrity-filled night: Kenan Thompson riffed on Project 2025, Maren Morris performed, and Mandy Patinkin watched from the audience.
• Not even the DNC was safe from the J.Lo-Affleck divorce. Emcee Mindy Kaling shouted out her home state of Massachusetts, mentioning the Red Sox, Dunkin’ Donuts, and urging Ben Affleck to “hang in there.”
• US House of Representatives Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries compared Trump to a bad ex-boyfriend: “Bro, we broke up with you for a reason!” he said. “There is no reason to ever get back together.”
• Former President Bill Clinton likened Biden to George Washington for his willingness to give up personal power for the sake of the greater good.
• Clinton, who celebrated his 78th birthday on Monday, teasingly reminded the crowd that he was still younger than Donald Trump. He also noted that Harris is the only candidate with the temperament and “sheer joy” befitting presidential office.
• Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi honored Biden’s legacy and thanked him for his service. “I know that Vice President Harris is ready to take us to new heights,” she added.
• Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, one of Harris’s VP contenders, reminded the audience that while Harris and Walz’s names would be on the ballot, everyone’s future was on the line.
• To the delight of an ecstatic crowd, Oprah Winfrey made a surprise appearance at the United Center. She delivered a message of unity, saying, “When we stand together it is impossible to conquer us.” Winfrey invoked the late John Lewis, telling the crowd that the ”hard work” and the “heart work” of democracy is never done.
• Winfrey, a registered Independent, encouraged fellow Independent and undecided voters to cast their ballots for decency, morality, and “just plain common sense.”
• Maryland Gov. Wes Moore supported a healthy dose of skepticism, as long as it was “a companion, not a captor.”
• Secretary Pete Buttigieg took a stab at J.D. Vance, saying that he only acknowledges people who live a life he accepts. “They are doubling down on negativity and grievance,” Buttigieg said of the Republican Party nominating Vance as VP.
• In an homage to Walz’s home state, John Legend and Sheila E. performed a rendition of Prince’s “Let’s Get Crazy.”
• Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar cited Walz’s service record, teaching career, and Midwestern common sense as qualifications that made him an outstanding candidate.
• In a heartwarming moment that rivaled Doug Emhoff’s gushing speech, Walz’s former students at Mankato West High School—including those he coached on the football team—flocked to the stage to honor him.
• Governor Walz took the stage, saying that his students had inspired him to run for Congress. Though he was in a deep red district with no money and no political experience, one should “never underestimate a public school teacher.”
• He highlighted his ability to work across the aisle without compromising his own values, allowing him to cut taxes, provide free meals in schools, and protect reproductive freedoms in Minnesota.
• A gun owner and hunter, Walz said that when it comes to guns, the top priority should be safety: “Your kids should be able to go to school without being shot dead in the hall.”
• Walz warned of Project 2025 and its threat to the middle class and reproductive rights. “Is it weird? Absolutely,” he said. “But it’s also wrong and it’s also dangerous.”

Day 4

• While a heavily rumored performance by one Beyoncé Knowles was not to be, the closing night of the Democratic National Convention was nevertheless an affecting one. Sen. Elizabeth Warren took the podium, wiping away tears as she recieved an extended ovation; Reverend Al Sharpton gave a spirited address before introducing four members of the Exonerated Five, including New York City Council member Yusef Salaam; and The Chicks performed the national anthem a cappella, after which the crowd broke into chants of “U-S-A!”
• Later in the evening, Kerry Washington stepped up as emcee. “I am not here tonight as an actor,” she said. “I am here as a mother, as a daughter, as a proud union member…I am here tonight because I am an American and because I am a voter.” She was eventually joined by her Scandal co-star Tony Goldwyn, as well as by Amara and Leella Ajagu, Vice President Harris’s great-neices, who helpfully reminded the crowd how to pronounce “Kamala.” (“Comma” plus “la.”)
• Gun violence was a running theme, with the likes of Michigan Sheriff Chris Swanson, Representative Lucy McBath, several parents of children killed in Uvalde, and both Sen. Mark Kelly and his wife, former congresswoman Gabby Gifford, giving remarks.
• P!nk performed an accoustic rendition of her song “What About Us” with her 13-year-old daughter Willow.
• Democrats in closely contested races were given a spotlight, including Rep. Colin Allred, who is running against Ted Cruz in Texas, and Rep. Ruben Gallego, who is running against Kari Lake in Arizona.
• Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Eva Longoria praised Vice President Harris as a leader who understands the needs—and can appreciate the struggles—of everyday American people, unlike a certain Republican billionaire.
• Former congressman Adam Kinzinger, a Republican, decried the direction his party had taken since Donald Trump entered politics: “I didn’t leave my party, my party left me.”
• The vice president’s younger sister, Maya Harris, spoke, paying tribute to their mother, Shyamala, a biologist and civil rights activist who died in 2009. “I so wish that Mommy could be here tonight,” Maya said. “I can just see her smiling, saying how proud she is of Kamala—and then, without missing a beat, she’d say, ‘That’s enough, you’ve got work to do.’”
• After an introduction by Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina—another of her would-be running mates—Vice President Harris took the stage, once again wearing a pantsuit by Chloé.
• Harris’s speech retraced the shape of her life and career so far, covering her childhood as the daughter of immigrants and her work as a prosecutor. She then formally accepted her party’s nomination for president: “My entire career, I’ve only had one client: the people. And so, 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...I accept your nomination to be president of the United States of America.”
• Calling Trump an “unserious man,” she promised to revivie a bipartisan immigration bill that he helped to kill, and underlined the ways that he would threaten women’s reproductive freedoms if he re-entered the White House.
• Harris urged that she and President Biden were “working around the clock” to free the remaining Israeli hostages and broker a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.
• She concluded on a rousing, hopeful note—“Let us write the next great chapter in the greatest story ever told”—before balloons and confetti rained down on the arena.