Democrats to showcase everyday Americans at next week's convention
Biggest names in Democratic Party to also have speaking slots at convention
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}From Joe Biden to Barack Obama to Hillary Clinton, the biggest names in the Democratic Party will speak in prime time at the Democratic National Convention, but party officials say that some everyday Americans will also be prominently featured at the four-day quadrennial confab.
Democratic Party officials announced on Monday that these people – including a teacher with a class of bilingual students in Wisconsin, a paramedic who emigrated from Mexico and is now on the frontlines in Florida in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, a Black female bus driver from Georgia, an autoworker in Michigan and a farmer from Pennsylvania who voted for President Trump in 2016 – will showcase presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden's messages on combating the coronavirus, stemming gun violence, heath care and his opposition to Trump.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Over the last several months in planning this convention, we had two goals in mind: to include more Americans than ever before, and to ensure that all Americans see themselves reflected in what they were viewing," Democratic National Convention Program Executive Stephanie Cutter said in a statement.
"These are the stories of the millions of working Americans that are struggling in the Trump recession, and as a result of Trump's complete mismanagement of the COVID crisis. Like the overwhelming majority of the American people, they are looking for a steady, experienced leader who is fighting for them, not for himself or for those at the top," Cutter emphasized.
The Democratic convention will be anchored in Milwaukee, Wis., but nearly all the speakers will be virtual. It will be held next Monday through Thursday, Aug. 17-20. The convention programming will be held in prime time, from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET, and streamed online on a variety of different sites and broadcast on TV.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Party officials also announced that nearly 1,000 crowdsourced videos from the roughly 4,000 Democratic convention delegates and other Americans will be featured during the four nights of prime-time programming. And they spotlighted that "over the course of 30 minutes, the reimagined roll call process will take convention viewers to all 57 states and territories."
The formal vote on the former vice president’s nomination as Democratic Party standard-bearer – and the vote on the party's platform – will be conducted virtually with delegates from across the country.
Biden will speak next Thursday evening, the final night of the convention, with his running mate giving her address the previous evening.
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Fox News has confirmed that former President Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama will have prominent speaking roles, as will populist Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who was Biden’s last remaining rival in the primaries before suspending his campaign and endorsing the former vice president in April. And Fox News also confirmed that former Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a 2016 Republican presidential candidate who remains a vocal Trump critic, will also speak at the confab.
Progressive Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts – another former 2020 Democratic presidential contender – and 2016 Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton – will also reportedly speak next week. Politico reports that former President Bill Clinton will also have a speaking slot in prime time during the convention.