The Dems Are Riding High, but Kamala Harris Faces New Hurdles

The Democrats’ party is over. After a historic four-day spectacle that showcased the next generation of political stars, while also showing the party’s limitations, Vice President Kamala Harris accepted the Democratic nomination for president and gave a stirring acceptance speech. But what exactly will we remember from the 2024 Democratic National Convention?

The Democrats have gone from a political party fronted by Joe Biden, a man with decades of service who’s coming to the end of his career, to one that’s putting young, vibrant rising stars onstage, says Vanity Fair editor in chief Radhika Jones. “You see it in the fashion; you hear it in the voices; you hear it in the variety of backgrounds.” The message is clear, she says: “This is a party that has a future. And I think that’s not necessarily something you can take for granted in a political party. I don’t think the Republican Party can take that for granted.”

Jones and VF contributing editor Ta-Nehisi Coates, who has been in Chicago this week, were on the latest episode of Inside the Hive and discussed the choreography by the Democrats at the convention and the limits of the big tent the party has projected as a pro-democracy coalition. Coates reported on the conflict at the center of the DNC this week, with no Palestinian American getting a slot onstage and uncommitted delegates protesting around the United Center, emphatically calling for a ceasefire, an end to the war in Gaza, and an arms embargo on Israel. “There is a contradiction at the heart of this convention right now, and simply put, the contradiction is: You have a candidate at the head of the ticket who was only made possible by the defeat of American apartheid,” says Coates. “At the same time, part of an administration that backs what I think—and again, I’ll get on my soapbox—can be fairly called an apartheid regime.”

The two also talked about the magnitude of having Harris lead a major party ticket and what it means for the future. Coates says he can’t imagine another presidential cycle without a really serious contender who’s not white and also probably not male. “The consequences of a loss for the country are also potentially deeply historic,” says Jones. “And so the pressure on her is unbelievable, I think. And it is hard to be a first, and that’s what she is. And that’s what she would be.”

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