The Central Times is sending two journalists daily to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago from Aug. 19-22. This was made possible by the Illinois Journalism Education Association. Each day, a reporter will be publishing a diary entry recounting their experiences from the convention. Read more of our coverage from the DNC at centraltimes.org.
10:16
Javen and I board our train to Union Station in Chicago, beginning our day of reporting.
11:30
We arrive at Union station, and take the L to McCormick Place, where caucus and council meetings take place and the convention’s exhibition hall is housed.
Noon
After some trouble finding the entrance, we make our way through the security perimeter and over to the Hyatt Regency to collect our credentials.
3:00
After stopping for lunch and to plan our day, Javen and I head to “From Apathy to Action: Mobilizing the Youth Vote,” a session hosted by several voter-turnout-focused organizations. We were planning on writing a story about what these organizations are planning on doing to mobilize Gen-Z voters, but there just wasn’t enough covered to merit an article.
5:00
After a coffee stop (mostly for me), we boarded a bus taking us from McCormick Place to the United Center, where the main speeches of the night were given. On a normal day this drive should take about 15 or 20 minutes, but because of the many layers of security perimeter we had to go through, it was more like an hour.
6:00
Upon finally arriving at the United Center, we found our seats in the upper deck and deposited our gear with our Adviser. After watching a few speeches by non-featured speakers, Javen and I decided to check out Press Row, where a lot of the media who didn’t quite make it into the arena proper had their booth set up (big stations like ABC, Fox News, CNN, etc. get booths in the arena, while smaller stations get platforms in the stand and others are sent out to media row). This is also where the “blue carpet” that welcomes some more prominent attendees ends, but we didn’t manage to score an interview with anyone there.
8:00
We returned to our seats to watch (and photograph) the speeches that I like to call “the undercard.” They’re shorter, mostly focused on specific issues. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker highlighted this group, with the former focusing on In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) and the latter speaking mostly against Donald Trump’s record as President. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) also spoke earlier in the night.
9:00
The keynote speeches began at nine, and it struck me just how apparent it was what each of them was there for, and who they were addressing. Some spoke to those in the room, some were clearly there to sway any independents watching from home towards voting blue. Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff, in particular, was clearly there to do two things: introduce himself to the nation at home, and add some depth to people’s perception of his wife, Kamala Harris. He told his backstory and explained who he is, before pivoting to talking about what Harris is like at home. He was followed by what was undoubtedly the highlight of the night: the speeches from Michelle and Barack Obama. The excitement in the room at the emergence of Michelle was palpable, and the United Center was raucous during both her and her husband’s speeches.
12:33
After taking the L back to Union Station, we boarded our train home, completing our long day of reporting at Day 2 of the DNC.
