The Dems Showed Unity in Chicago – Mostly.
Before Joe Biden’s withdrawal – just a month ago – the Democratic National Convention (DNC) was expected to look more like a wake than a party. Trump led in the polls, and the party was mired in leadership disputes and anti-war protests. It was set to be a repeat of the 1968 DNC, also in Chicago – a disjointed and frustrated party marching towards defeat.
Instead, though, we saw the Dems successfully collaborate and assuage many of their long-standing factional disputes. With speeches from Senator Bernie Sanders on the party’s progressive wing to old establishment figures like Hillary Clinton, the first few days of the convention especially suggested that the party was operating as a coalition of interests, and the (historically excluded) left-wing faction was being invited to at least have a say.
The message that unified Dems across ideological lines was centred around democracy and freedom. As Michelle Obama put it: “This is our time to stand up for what we know in our hearts is right. To stand up, not just for our basic freedoms but for decency and humanity; for basic respect, dignity, and empathy; for the values at the very foundation of this democracy.”
But certain events on the last day unfortunately undercut that message. The Uncommitted Movement, which encouraged hundreds of thousands of Americans to vote “uncommitted” in party primaries (a purely symbolic statement, broadcasting their view that Biden must do more to secure peace in the Middle East), sent thirty delegates to the Convention. They represented about 700,000 real Democratic voters.
These delegates were not random, outside protestors but Democratic party insiders, people who support Kamala Harris but also want to speak up on behalf of America’s Middle Eastern community in favour of a ceasefire and release of all hostages. The spokesperson the Uncommitted delegates put forward, Georgia state congresswoman Ruwa Romman, was not permitted to take the main stage – despite her speech being pre-vetted by DNC staff.
It shows that, while Democrats increasingly seem to understand the power of party unity and intra-party democracy in some ways, they still have a lot to work on. Many have made a compelling case since the incident that listening to voters on the issues they care about – even if others in the party may disagree or find it hard to hear – is a crucial way of building the party unity everyone is so impressed by. Some debates are certainly hard to have – but that’s democracy, and it’s no excuse to ignore them entirely.
In Chicago, the Dems managed to settle a lot of tough debates on myriad other issues that would have seemed unthinkable just a few years ago. The more unified they are on real voters’ concerns, the better chance they have of beating Donald Trump in November.
In other US election news…
Debate season is imminent, with Harris-Trump facing off on September 10th and Walz-Vance going head to head on October 1st.
As Kamala Harris gave her speech formally accepting the nomination, Trump reportedly posted on Truth Social every 45 seconds on average in what some are calling a “meltdown”.
Third party candidate RFK Jr. is expected to drop out of the race this afternoon and (according to rumours) endorse Donald Trump.
