This Monday marked the start of the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, set to culminate with Vice President Kamala Harris accepting the Democratic nomination for president on Thursday night. Night one of the DNC boasted an impressive roster of speakers, including representatives Maxine Waters and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, Jill Biden, and President Joe Biden.
The weather gods seemed to smile upon the Democrats as Chicago blessed the DNC with textbook perfect weather: 75 degrees and sunny, with no trace of the Windy City’s swampy humidity. That’s not the only notable change to the city, though: Entire streets are fenced off, the traffic rivals that found in Los Angeles, and security is stationed all over.
It’s no surprise that the DNC is an event of massive proportions, but that became personally apparent to me at 30,000 feet, when my Chicago-bound flight was nearly diverted to Milwaukee thanks to a VIP arrival. As Air Force One descended into O’Hare Airport, my plane was among those stuck in a holding pattern and didn’t have enough fuel to withstand the hour-long wait. But, mercifully, my plane full of Chicagoans, convention-goers, and one Pod Save America host eventually touched down at O’Hare without any unplanned detours.
Serving as the convention’s de facto welcome committee, the airport staff ensured that travelers wouldn’t make it more than a few feet without seeing red, white, and blue. In the main hall, the row of international flags was replaced with the Stars and Stripes, while baggage claim was decorated like a suburban lawn on the Fourth of July and ads for C-Span flashed above the escalators. Even in the back of my cab from the airport, the usual banal iPad games were replaced with facts about Kamala Harris.
McCormick Place, where the convention’s daytime events and caucuses take place, was bustling with press, volunteers, and no-nonsense Secret Service agents. TSA manned the entrance point outside, leaving no pocket unzipped. I spied a pair of drag queens decked out in rhinestones and sky-high wigs spraying their hair one last time before handing over the contraband aerosol.
That’s not to say that everyone in Chicago is gung ho about the convention. A small group of megaphone-carrying protestors gathered outside McCormick Place to bemoan the fact that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was left off the ticket.
While McCormick hosts many of the day’s smaller events, the United Center serves as the convention’s beating heart. Inside feels a bit like a fever dream: On a lap around the media row, I immediately ran into former Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot. Inside the arena, heaps of delegates from Texas were decked out in Lone Star shirts, while others donned various American flag paraphernalia and glittery cowboy hats. One person even recycled some 2024 Olympics merch. Talk about an occasion to outfit repeat!
The night started with a bang thanks to Democratic Party chair Jaime Harrison’s young children, who led an adorable rendition of the Pledge of Allegiance, and Representative Maxine Waters, who earned a raucous standing ovation. Emotions ran particularly high as Reverend Jesse Jackson took the floor alongside Reverend Al Sharpton, with delegates chanting “Jesse! Jesse! Jesse!” Also rousing was the motion to ceremoniously select Walz as the Democrats’ VP nominee. During the first performance of the night, from country singer Mickey Guyton, one delegation even broke out their phone flashlights—a bright start to a big week.
- Someone in the Tennessee delegation came dressed in a donkey costume. Furries for Harris, I see you!
- In an excellent display of casting, the DNC tapped Hot President Tony Goldwyn to host the first day of speeches.
- There’s been a lot of chanting. Former Chicago Bulls player Steve Kerr led a “U-S-A” chant, while Hillary Clinton kicked off a chorus of “Thank you, Joe!” At the mention of Trump’s 34 felony charges, the crowd chanted, “Lock him up!” as Clinton nodded knowingly.
- Harris’s childhood best friend, Stacey Johnson-Batiste, and her mother, Doris Johnson, took the stage. In a bittersweet moment, Johnson acknowledged Harris’s late mother and said how proud she would be of her.
- In a very 2016 choice, Hillary Clinton walked out to “Brave” by Sara Bareilles and left the stage to “Fight Song” by Rachel Platten.
- Representative James Clyburn called Project 2025 “Jim Crow 2.0.”
- The DNC organized a Law Order-esque parody about Trump’s criminal record and Harris’s prosecutorial record.
- There was a lot of emphasis on Trump cheating with a porn star—a pretty sex-negative cheap shot.
- Representative Jasmine Crockett shared a touching personal anecdote about Harris wiping Crockett’s tears away when she was first elected to Congress.
- Josh Zurawski—whose wife, Amanda, was forced to wait until she was near death to receive a lifesaving abortion under Trump’s abortion ban—received a standing ovation for saying that reproductive rights are not just a women’s issue.
- Kentucky governor Andy Beshear, who had been one of the front-runners for Harris’s VP slot, reminded the audience that abortion is on the ballot this November. “Trump and Vance simply don’t believe in your freedom,” he said. “Their policies give rapists more rights than their victims.”
- Senator Raphael Warnock lauded President Biden as a true patriot who always puts the people first.
- Warnock and AOC were the only speakers who mentioned the crisis in Gaza. “We are all God’s children,” said Warnock, who is also a reverend.
- First lady Jill Biden talked about how her late son Beau Biden spoke highly of Harris and called her “special.”
- Ashley Biden recalled her father taking the train from DC to Wilmington, Delaware, to surprise her for her eighth birthday and immediately turning back around to tend to matters in the Senate. “Joe Biden is the OG Girl Dad.”
- Biden and his daughter shared a heartwarming hug after her speech. He even broke out a handkerchief to dab at his tears. “That was my daughter!” he shouted.
- “She still leaves me both breathless and speechless,” Biden said of Jill.
- “Our best days are not behind us, they’re before us,” Biden continued. “Democracy has prevailed, democracy has delivered, and now democracy must be preserved.”
- Another “Thank you, Joe” chant started—to which Biden replied, “Thank you, Kamala, too!”
- Biden reminded the crowd that this year’s election comes down to the right to choose, vote, and love freely.
- “Donald Trump is going to find out the power of women in 2024,” Biden said.
- Biden addressed Gaza, calling for a ceasefire: “End this war.”
- “It was the best decision I made my whole career,” Biden said of choosing Harris as his VP.
- Biden said he was more optimistic about the future than when he was elected to the US Senate at 29.
