Key events
Although Kamala Harris’s big speech is scheduled for Thursday, she made a surprise appearance at the convention yesterday when her large Milwaukee rally with Tim Walz was live-streamed in Chicago. The moment allowed her to energize two large crowds at the same time. On Monday at the start of the convention, Harris also made a surprise speech on stage to thank Joe Biden.
In Milwaukee, Harris criticized Donald Trump for comments earlier in the day saying he had “no regrets” about Roe v Wade. She also told her supporters: “We know this is going to be a tight race until the very end.”
Pelosi and Buttigieg to address DNC today
Transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who was instrumental in persuading Joe Biden to step aside a month ago, will also address the Democratic national convention today.
Retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, a former adviser to Donald Trump on security and foreign policy, will also speak as part of Democrats’ enlistment of Republicans, Reuters reports.
Convention organizers have dubbed the theme for Wednesday “a fight for our freedoms”.
Associated Press reports that it is a nod to the concept around which Kamala Harris has organized her presidential campaign.
She frames Donald Trump as a threat to abortion rights and personal choices, but also to democracy itself.
Walz to headline third night of Democratic national convention
Joan E Greve
Tim Walz will seek to build on the intense enthusiasm surrounding his and Kamala Harris’s campaign on Wednesday, as the newly anointed vice-presidential nominee headlines the third night of the Democratic national convention in Chicago.
The speech will give Walz an opportunity to introduce himself to a much wider audience of voters, as most Americans were unfamiliar with the Minnesota governor before Harris selected him as her running mate earlier this month. An ABC News/Ipsos poll conducted last month, shortly after Joe Biden withdrew from the presidential race and endorsed Harris, showed that only 13% of Americans knew enough about Walz to register an opinion of him.
But Walz has an early advantage in cultivating a positive image, as he has captured the internet’s imagination in the past few weeks. Fans of the friendly governor have showered social media platforms with memes depicting him as the father figure that America needs right now. On the campaign trail, Harris often introduces her running mate as “Coach Walz” to remind voters of his background as a teacher and football coach.
Opening summary
Good morning and welcome to our coverage of the Democratic National Convention with former president Bill Clinton and prospective vice-president Tim Walz due to address the crowds in Chicago later.
Last night delegates were treated to speeches by Bernie Sanders, who said that “billionaires in both parties should not be able to buy elections,” and Kamala Harris’s husband Doug Emhoff who told the audience that his wife was “ready to lead,” adding: “She brings both joy and toughness to this task, and she will be a great president we will all be proud of.”
Michelle Obama energized the crowd, telling them that “hope is making a comeback” as Harris prepares to take on Donald Trump. Her husband, concluding the evening with his keynote speech, mocked Trump for his “childish nicknames”, “crazy conspiracy theories” and “weird obsession with crowd sizes”.
Barack Obama ended the second night of the convention with a characteristic call to action: “We’ll elect leaders up and down the ballot who will fight for the hopeful, forward-looking America we believe in. And together, we too will build a country that is more secure and more just, more equal and more free. So let’s get to work.”
You can read our report here:
