Democrats Prepare to Celebrate Harris, 'A Daughter of California,' at Chicago Convention

CHICAGO — California Democrats have arrived in force at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, brimming with anticipation to anoint Vice President Kamala Harris as the party’s first nominee from the Golden State.

“Certainly, California Democrats are extremely excited to be the home state of our party’s nominee, a daughter of California,” said Rusty Hicks, chair of the California Democratic Party.

Elected leaders and party activists swarmed the lobby of the delegation’s hotel along the Chicago River, where visitors were greeted with room cards adorned with the smiling face of the state’s senior U.S. senator, Alex Padilla.

Harris’ rise to the top of the ticket has reinvigorated the party’s rank and file, Hicks said. During a recent swing through the Central Valley, he said 50 volunteers greeted him on a Tuesday morning to knock on doors for a swing district congressional campaign.

“I’m not sure we would have seen the same excitement four to six weeks ago,” Hicks said.

Will that excitement carry California Democrats through the week in Chicago? That’s what we’ll be watching, along with these other storylines at the DNC.

How will Harris present her life story?

While Harris has been on the national political stage for more than half a decade, how she shares her personal story is still evolving.

As Harris took the lead on the Biden administration’s response to the Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade — and criticized Republican laws banning abortion even in cases of rape and incest — she increasingly shared a story from her high school years. Harris has said she was inspired to become a prosecutor after learning that her friend was being sexually abused by her father.

Then there’s her own identity. As the first Black and South Asian woman to lead a presidential ticket, it will be interesting to see how Harris discusses her unique background and — as Hillary Clinton said in her 2016 DNC nominating speech — “putting a crack in that glass ceiling.”

“Not only is she the daughter of an immigrant from India who came over in 1958 or ‘59, and a father from Jamaica, but … she grew up in Oakland and Berkeley, but also in Canada and goes to Howard University,” Harris biographer Dan Morain said in an interview on KQED’s Political Breakdown. “She lived quite a varied life as a young person.”

A recent CBS News poll suggests that Harris still has room to define her political north star. The survey found just 64% of registered voters knew what Harris stood for — as opposed to 86% for former President Donald Trump.

How much will Harris lean into her California record?

The vice president’s supporters have quickly drawn the contrast between Harris, the prosecutor, and Trump, the convicted felon. Harris’ experience as attorney general in a border state has also shaped her campaign’s early messaging on immigration. But which parts of Harris’ political career in the Golden State will her supporters highlight at the convention? Will they tout her $25 billion settlement with big banks following the foreclosure crisis? Or her crackdown against for-profit Corinthian College? Will convention speakers weave those stories into a compelling narrative of Harris as a champion of economic justice?

Some of that work will be left to Harris surrogates such as Sen. Laphonza Butler, a former advisor on Harris’ 2020 presidential campaign, and Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has moved up through the political ranks with Harris since their days in San Francisco.

Newsom, who arrives in Chicago on Monday night, hinted last week that he plans to be an active booster at the convention.

“You’ll be sick of me by Thursday,” he joked.

Will there be protests over the war in Gaza?

Yes. In fact, the protests were underway on Sunday night, as hundreds of demonstrators marched south down Michigan Avenue behind banners that read “Feminists and LGBTQ+ People for a Free Palestine” and “STOP Gaza’s Genocide, No More Arms to Israel.”

It’s unclear what effect the demonstrations will have on the convention, which is intended to serve as a prime-time advertisement for the Democratic Party. The party has been divided over the war Israel launched in Gaza in response to Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack.

Protests have bubbled up at Harris rallies and even at her recent fundraising swing in San Francisco. In Chicago, a “March on the DNC” is planned for Monday and Thursday, advocating, among other goals, for the end of U.S. aid to Israel. Will the protests disrupt the convention programming — as they did during California’s Democratic Party convention in November? And will delegates critical of Biden and Harris’ support for Israel make their voices heard during party meetings and on the convention floor?

On a Thursday planning call, Kristina Beverlin, who has organized Washington state Democrats in favor of a ceasefire, urged members of the Progressive Caucus of California’s Democratic Party to petition Harris directly at the convention.

“We are trying to get as many delegates to the DNC as possible to sign on to a letter that would put Palestinian rights, and an [Israeli] arms embargo, into the DNC platform,” Beverlin said.

In light of the demonstrations, Hicks said he anticipates security around DNC hotels and event sites to be tight, but he expected “everyone to be heard and be respectful.”

“I certainly believe that our work is too important, and we’ll move forward whatever may occur over the course of the next week or so,” he added.