Democratic Party delegates stood everywhere from Delaware at night to Hawaii during the day, from a car lot in Michigan to the shore of the Mississippi River, as they completed the main business of their first virtual national convention.
Spread across 57 states and territories, they voted Tuesday to nominate Joe Biden for president.
The former vice president won the nomination with 2,687 delegates collected during primaries and caucuses. His closest opponent, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, had 1,073.
But instead of witnessing a convention floor balloon drop, Mr. Biden and his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, stood in a simple room with a modest number of balloons, where Mr. Biden briefly thanked the delegates. Instead of business as usual, it was a convention that was virtual, with only a handful of speakers on stage in Milwaukee, the gathering’s official base.
In addition to the roll call vote, the convention featured speakers varying from former President Bill Clinton to former Secretary of State John Kerry.
The convention continues tonight with speeches by U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., Mr. Biden’s running mate; former President Barack Obama; Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who lost to President Donald Trump in 2016; U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.; and others.
The Republican National Convention, during which President Donald Trump will be named the party’s nominee in his bid for a second term, will take place Aug. 24-27 in Charlotte, N.C.
President Trump is scheduled to accept the nomination during a speech in Jacksonville, Fla.
— Dave Mason
