Democrats will honor Biden while pivoting to Harris on first day of convention

CHICAGO (AP) — A refreshed Democratic Party gathered Monday night for a valedictory speech from President Joe Biden, whose decision to end his reelection bid released newfound energy with Vice President Kamala Harris ′ rise to the top of the ticket.

The Democratic National Convention that began Monday in Chicago holds particularly high stakes for the party one month after an unprecedented mid-campaign switch from Biden to Harris. The opening night was designed as a handoff from the incumbent to his hand-picked successor — albeit four years before he intended for her to follow him.

Harris made an unannounced appearance onstage Monday evening to preview Biden’s speech later in the program.

“Joe, thank you for your historic leadership, for your lifetime of service to our nation, and for all you’ll continue to do,” she said. “We are forever grateful to you.”

Democrats are looking to the weeklong event to slingshot Harris toward a faceoff with Republican Donald Trump, whose comeback bid for the White House is viewed by Democrats as an existential threat. Having taken over the ticket just one month ago, Harris must now win over a divided country that is viewing her more positively but still making up its mind about the election.

Beyond the convention’s pomp, the event comes as a pivotal moment for the party and its new nominee. A false step could hobble Harris at a moment when her candidacy has been enjoying a burst of money, momentum and even joy. And real questions loom about the depth of Harris’ newfound support, the breadth of her coalition and the strength of her movement.

Not even a month ago, Democrats were deeply divided over foreign policy, political strategy and Biden himself, who was holding on after a disastrous debate by claiming he had a better chance than any other Democrat — including Harris — of beating Trump.

At morning meetings prior to Monday’s prime-time programming, convention delegates were dressed head to toe in merchandise celebrating Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. Some wore the vice president’s face on their scarves or her slogans on graphic tees.

Walz suggested at a meeting of the Hispanic Caucus that Harris had reset the race.

“People don’t just want to vote against something. They want to vote for something,” he said. “Kamala Harris has given you something to vote for.”

Part of introducing Harris and Walz will be first giving a graceful exit to the incumbent president, who is slated to deliver the main address Monday.

The Democratic Party would almost certainly have been in a far worse state if Biden had continued to cling to the nomination. He faced growing concerns about his mental and physical acuity after struggling to complete sentences during his debate against Trump.

After deciding to step aside and endorse Harris, Biden will instead receive a hero’s welcome in his final turn in the spotlight 52 years after being elected to the Senate from Delaware.

Biden, aides said, was looking to use his speech to cast Harris as a key partner to his accomplishments in office and to make the case for why she must defeat Trump in November.

Biden told reporters during a walkthrough of the arena that “it’s a memorable moment” and that he was ready to pass the baton to Harris.

At a breakfast hosted by the Florida delegation, a party volunteer pulled out a suitcase and began to hand out replicas of Biden’s famous aviator sunglasses.

“Joe Biden made a selfless, heroic decision, and it’ll be awesome to celebrate him tonight,” Democratic Rep. Kathy Castor of Florida told The Associated Press. “And then we’re going to look to the future and pivot.”

An early focus on the convention program was honoring the civil rights movement, with an appearance from the Rev. Jesse Jackson, the founder of the Chicago-based Rainbow PUSH Coalition, who is ailing with Parkinson’s disease. There were several references to Fannie Lou Hamer, the late civil rights activist who gave a landmark speech at a Democratic convention in 1964.

Hamer was a former sharecropper and a leader of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, a racially integrated group that challenged the seating of an all-white Mississippi delegation at the 1964 Democratic National Convention. Hamer spoke on Aug. 22, 1964 — exactly 60 years before Harris is set to accept the Democratic nomination and become the first Black woman and first person of South Asian descent to be the presidential nominee of a major party.

A potential distraction during the convention will be thousands of protesters descending on Chicago to decry the Biden-Harris administration’s support for Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.

A few thousand people marched toward the United Center, site of the DNC, on Monday afternoon. And a group that called itself the Abandon Biden movement held an event to rebrand itself as Abandon Harris. The group argued the vice president’s inability to differentiate herself from Biden’s handling of the war was not acceptable.

Harris’ allies hope the pro-Palestinian protesters will not overshadow the official program, which features a slate of current and former Democratic stars, plus what organizers describe as “everyday people.”

Among the speakers: United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain; Hillary Clinton; Reps. Grace Meng, Jamie Raskin and Jasmine Crockett; Sens. Chris Coons and Raphael Warnock; and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.

Also expected to perform are musicians James Taylor, Jason Isbell and Mickey Guyton.

___

Barrow reported from Atlanta. Associated Press writers Will Weissert in Chicago, Ali Swenson and Michelle L. Price in New York and Chris Megerian in Washington contributed to this report.

Farnoush Amiri, Steve Peoples, Zeke Miller And Bill Barrow, The Associated Press