Democrats begin DNC united behind Harris, split on Gaza

Kamala Harris and Tim Walz campaign in Western Pennsylvania

Harris and Walz took a short campaign bus tour through swing-state Pennsylvania before heading to Chicago

(Image credit: Angela Weiss / AFP via Getty Images)

published 19 August 2024

What happened

Vice President Kamala Harris and running mate Gov. Tim Walz arrived in Chicago for the Democratic National Convention, where they will be ceremonially nominated for president and vice president, respectively. Before flying into the Windy City, Harris and Walz took a short campaign bus tour through swing-state Pennsylvania.

The Democratic National Convention will open with President Joe Biden "speaking in prime time as he passes the torch" to Harris, Axios said. Democrats will celebrate Biden's accomplishments "as he in turn makes the case for the Harris presidency," the Chicago Sun-Times said. But "even as feel-good displays of joy and confidence are set to dominate" the DNC, The New York Times said, Israel's war in Gaza is "bitterly dividing the Democratic establishment from its left flank," and protests are expected inside and outside the convention center.

"I very much consider us the underdog," Harris told reporters in Pennsylvania. Nominees usually get a polling bump from their conventions, but Harris "stole Donald Trump's Republican convention bounce" and she's entering the DNC "not just with momentum, but with a slight advantage over Trump nationally and in most key battleground states," Politico said. Trump is "still well within striking distance," but "historically, voters' preferences are typically all-but-solidified at the conclusion of the conventions."

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.