DNC 2024: Is Chicago the right choice?

The Democrats will head to the Midwest to rubber stamp their presidential nominee. The Democratic National Committee announced that the 2024 Democratic National Convention will take place in Chicago, where President Biden is expected to be officially nominated for a second term — assuming he officially decides to run again.

This will mark the first time the Democratic convention heads to the Windy City since 1996. Given the current fractious state of politics, some are worried that 2024 could be a repeat not of 1996, but the infamous 1968 Chicago convention, which, under similar political tensions, "was a catastrophe that hardly needs explaining — masses of shaggy-haired protesters battling police," the Chicago Sun-Times writes.

The 1996 convention, on the other hand, is remembered much more favorably. That year, there were "events held across the city as Chicago used the convention to showcase its beauty and diversity," and it is often looked at as "a literal and figurative turning of the page from the 1968 Democratic National Convention," WGN reports.

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There are plenty of reasons the Democratic Party chose Chicago, The New York Times notes, such as the city being "a liberal place that embraces abortion rights, LGBTQ rights, and labor and civil rights — and that Illinois reflected the diversity of the nation." Will the upcoming convention help draw in Midwestern voters? Or will the sharpened political landscape create a scene akin to 1968?

'No other city comes close'

Chicago being selected to host the DNC "reawakens something that feels like hope," the editorial board of the Chicago Tribune opines. While it may be unsurprising that a Chicago-based newspaper would back the choice, the Tribune writes that the city was likely granted the convention because "no other city comes close to pulling off the number of national political conventions that Chicago has hosted for both parties."

Chicago is still a significant union town, the Tribune adds, whereas its main convention competitor, Atlanta, is located in "a 'right-to-work' state where workers are not required to join a union as a condition of employment." This bodes well for Chicago given Biden's favorability towards unions, pledging to be the "most pro-union president leading the most pro-union administration in American history." Bureau of Labor Statistics reports show that Illinois had an estimated 735,000 union members in 2022, compared to Georgia's 200,000, and this may have played towards the DNC's choice.

The geographic location of Chicago also works well for the Democrats. "Well because, you know, we're in the Midwest here – and it's undoubtedly Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota — those seats are going to be in play," political strategist Pete Giangreco tells CBS News. North Central College political science professor Stephen Maynard Caliendo adds that while the location of a convention often doesn't swing voters one way or another, the working-class nature of Chicago is "going to be an important part of the message for the Democrats next year."

'Jettisoning a chance to gain a bigger foothold'

This affinity for Chicago, however, was not shared by all, partially because the South will likely be a key demographic area in the 2024 election. By foregoing Georgia in favor of Illinois, which is already a decisively blue state, "national Democrats are also jettisoning a chance to gain a bigger foothold in a pivotal battleground state that both parties see as key to winning in 2024," Greg Bluestein and Riley Bunch write for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

"Good for Chicago, but I think the activity and action in the general election of 2024 is going to be right here," Bobby Kahn, the former head of the Georgia Democratic Party, tells the Constitution, adding that his state "is still very much in the center of politics and presidential politics in particular." City Councilman Amir Farokhi agreed, and tells the outlet, "Georgia and the South are the epicenter for the present and future growth of the Democratic Party."

Chicago is also a city grappling with high crime rates, and this could prove problematic, as Chicago "has been at the center of the [Democrat's] dilemma on the issue of crime," Nicole Gaudiano writes for Business Insider. Following the announcement, Gaudiano adds, Republicans "once again hit House Democrats for overwhelmingly opposing a GOP effort to strike down changes to the District of Columbia's criminal code that they considered more lenient." Crime played a factor in the city's recent mayoral elections, and the rising tensions could lead to more problems in 2024.