Party conventions are about uniting the parties and motivating ordinary voters for the rest of the campaign. And they can also be an opportunity to reach easily persuaded voters in swing states and introduce the party to a broad audience.

That is exactly what Governor Tim Walz (D-Minnesota), whom Vice President Kamala Harris nominated as her running mate, did on Wednesday night, not only to the faithful crowds at the Chicago arena, but also to voters watching at home.

But that audience also heard President Biden, the Obamas, the Clintons, even Oprah Winfrey, as well as several other speakers before Harris herself took the stage Thursday night.

Here are six takeaways from the conference so far:

1. “Coach Walz” gives the Democrats a pep talk.

The Democrats have always had the problem of being seen as elitist, more head than heart. But Walz showed, as he did in his first speech when he was introduced as Harris’ candidate, that he has a knack for society. It is noteworthy that the candidates with degrees from Ivy League universities are Trump-Vance and not Harris-Walz. (Joe Biden was, by the way, the first president since Reagan not to have a degree from an Ivy League university.)

Walz also has no roots in San Francisco, like Harris, but he is from from the Midwest, from a small town in Nebraska, former congressman from a once-Republican district in Minnesota, governor of that state, and, of course, football coach. Democrats have really pounced on that last part of his resume. And Walz addressed it in his speech, telling the crowd that this was the fourth quarter of the election and that Democrats were down a field goal, but they were on offense and charging down the field. To cross the finish line, he said, the job of the crowd and spectators was to “get in the trenches and block and tackle on the ballot.”

2. The Democrats tried to appeal to the masses and demonstrate that their values ​​were mainstream.

Whether it was Oprah – someone Donald Trump once said he would want to be his vice president in an ideal world -, Bill Clinton, Pete Buttigieg, Walz or the handful of Republicans who took the floor, Wednesday’s event seemed to be about appealing to undecided voters and persuadable independent voters and Republicans to give them a permission structure to vote for Harris.

Oprah noted that she is registered as an independent candidate and urged “all independents and undecideds” to vote for Harris. “In 2024, decency and respect are on the ballot,” she said, adding, “Common sense tells us that Kamala Harris and Tim Walz can give us decency and respect. … Let’s choose common sense over nonsense.”

Walz, for his part, also promoted Democratic ideas that, while not as radical as Republicans tried to portray them, were nonetheless mainstream, such as more affordable housing, lower prescription drug prices, reducing medical debt, providing school meals for children, and supporting abortion rights.

“While other states were banning books from their schools,” Walz said, “we were banishing hunger from ours.”

3. It was also a night when rising Democratic stars showed off.

Party conventions are always events that are not just about the candidates in the current election cycle, but also about the chance for potential future candidates to shine, stand out and make a name for themselves in front of a large audience.

This was evident Wednesday night, when not only Buttigieg gave speeches, but also people like Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Maryland Governor Wes Moore – three names the country will likely hear again in the Democratic presidential primaries in four or eight years.

4. This is not Joe Biden’s convention.

Look, Jon, Lil. The Democratic National Convention has been a loud and enthusiastic affair so far. One reason is that President Biden has decided to step aside in favor of Harris. Democrats, who had been telling pollsters for over a year that they weren’t happy with their choices, are emboldened.

Those chants of “Thank you, Joe” seemed to have a double meaning. Thank you for what you did as president, but also thank you for dropping out of the race. Biden delivered a lofty farewell speech that also made clear why Democrats were nervous about his candidacy.

5. Michelle Obama gave the speech she could never give as First Lady or potential First Lady.

Michelle Obama’s husband said after her speech and right before his own that he might be the only person stupid enough to follow her because she rocked the house. Her speech was a litany of things she hadn’t wanted to say for at least eight years. She delivered harsh lines about “positive discrimination against generational wealth” and said that Trump was trying to instill fear in her and her husband because he had been threatened by two highly educated and successful people “who happened to be black.”

Political advisers warned her during the 2007 election campaign and later in the White House not to make such statements, because she and her husband had to walk a fine line so as not to anger white voters who might be wary of voting for a black man as president. But today Michelle Obama is one of the most popular Democrats in the country. She had the power to say what she said, and she is clearly liberated from no longer actively intervening in electoral politics.

6. Doug Emhoff empowered his wife, but also showed what a modern family looks like.

There has been a lot of talk about Harris being the first woman president, the first black woman and the first woman of South Asian descent to hold that office. That would be a huge historic achievement. But it’s also unusual for a man to turn his back on his wife, who is running for president herself. It’s also very different from what Bill Clinton did for Hillary Clinton in 2016, the only time this type of speech was given. Not only was he a well-known former president, but the Clintons had an adult child.

Emhoff, on the other hand, is far less well known and his family’s story showed many new things on the political stage. It shed light on an interracial marriage and the complexities of stepmotherhood. And remember, a A significant percentage of marriages end in divorcetherefore, millions of Americans can identify with blended families.

And now the table is set for Harris. She will deliver a speech to what is likely to be the largest audience she has ever had. It is an opportunity for her to continue the momentum generated by her candidacy. Can she deliver?

Copyright: NPR