By ANDREW ADAMS
Capitol News Illinois
[email protected]
CHICAGO – The Democratic National Convention concluded Thursday night, ushering in the final weeks of the 2024 presidential election. Vice President Kamala Harris officially accepted the Democratic nomination and will face former President Donald Trump in November.
During the week, Andrew Adams of Capitol News Illinois photographed the Illinois delegation and key speeches – many from prominent citizens of the state.
Illinois Democrats met daily during the convention at a downtown Chicago hotel, where party officials and invited guests – from union leaders to elected officials from across the country – gathered the party’s inner circle and laid out their election strategy.
State Rep. and Chair of the Illinois Democratic Party Lisa Hernandez speaks to members of her party at a DNC Illinois delegation breakfast. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
U.S. Senator Rafael Warnock of Georgia, whose election helped give Democrats a majority in the Senate, speaks to Illinois Democrats at a delegation breakfast. (Photo by Andrew Adams for Capitol News Illinois)
Former presidential candidate and U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg speaks at a breakfast for the Illinois delegation at the DNC. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
U.S. Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey left the stage before addressing Illinois Democrats to begin his address from a chair in the center of the downtown Chicago ballroom hosting the Illinois delegation. (Photo by Andrew Adams of Capitol News Illinois)
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson addresses the Illinois delegation at their daily breakfast during the Democratic National Convention. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Historian Shermann “Dilla” Thomas, known by his social media handle @6figga_dilla, speaks to Illinois Democrats. Through his travel company and social media, he often uses the phrase “Everything great about America comes from Chicago.” (Photo by Andrew Adams at Capitol News Illinois)
Photos from inside the convention
At the United Center – home of the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks – thousands of elected officials, Democratic Party insiders and media from around the world gathered to hear speeches and discuss the elections that will be important for the party this year.
Rep. Bob Morgan (D-Deerfield) of Illinois shouts during a speech by President Joe Biden at the Democratic National Convention. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Illinois State Rep. Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz, Democrat of Glenview, cheers during a speech at the DNC. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
On a crowded and often chaotic congressional floor, Illinois Senator Karina Villa (D-West Chicago) waves to her caller to let him know where she is. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Illinois Sen. Bob Cunningham (D-Chicago) speaks with Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park) during the Democratic National Convention. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
A Tennessee chapter delegate cheers during a DNC speech. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Illinois State Representative Kam Buckner (D-Chicago) waits for the evening’s program. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Illinois AFL-CIO President Tim Drea takes a phone call in the hallway at the Democratic National Convention. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
The speeches
Throughout the week, several Illinoisans took the DNC stage, including the governor, current and former members of Congress, and former Illinois junior senator Barack Obama.
Governor JB Pritzker, who was in the running to be Kamala Harris’s vice presidential candidate, speaks to Democratic Party insiders – and millions of viewers at home – at the Democratic National Convention. (Photo by Andrew Adams of Capitol News Illinois)
Vice presidential candidate and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is still introducing himself to a national audience, speaking on the second-to-last day of the DNC. Walz is seen on the United Center’s big screen as people crowd a hallway for a better view. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
After being introduced by his daughter Ashley, Joe Biden wipes tears from his eyes before delivering a speech on the first day of the DNC. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Former President Barack Obama speaks at the Democratic National Convention. He first rose to national prominence in 2004 when he delivered a now-famous speech at the Democratic National Convention as a senator from Illinois. (Photo by Andrew Adams for Capitol News Illinois)
Former President Bill Clinton speaks at the DNC. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi waves to attendees at the DNC. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Edgar Vilchez, a Chicago student who witnessed a drive-by shooting, speaks at the DNC alongside family members of people killed by gun violence. (Photo by Andrew Adams of Capitol News Illinois)
Minnesota First Lady Gwen Walz greets her husband Tim shortly after he finished the speech accepting the Democratic nomination for vice president. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Dissent within and outside the Convention
As with every political convention, thousands protested against the DNC in Chicago. The protests were mostly peaceful, with some drawing thousands of people.
A masked protester holds up a green smoke bomb during a protest march Monday near the Democratic National Convention venue in Chicago. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
A protester climbs a tree to hang a tarp as part of a tent camp following a rally and march Monday that was broken up by police shortly after the tent was set up. (Photo by Andrew Adams for Capitol News Illinois)
Palestinian flags are seen at a protest rally outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Monday. (Photo by Andrew Adams at Capitol News Illinois)
Most of the protests during the DNC this week focused on the U.S. involvement in the war in Gaza and opposed the country’s aid to Israel. (Photo by Andrew Adams at Capitol News Illinois)
Chicago singer-songwriter Jamila Woods, long a fixture on the Chicago poetry scene, sings at a rally to protest the DNC on Monday. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Cornel West, a political activist and academic, is pictured backstage at a protest rally against the DNC on Monday. West is running for president as an independent candidate but will not appear on the Illinois ballot. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Many DNC protests drew large numbers of reporters and photographers, including this group photographed at a protest in downtown Chicago on Sunday. (Photo by Andrew Adams of Capitol News Illinois)
Dozens of riot police and hundreds of uniformed officers were called to disperse a group of protesters in Chicago’s Union Park on Monday. (Photo by Andrew Adams for Capitol News Illinois)
Abbas Alawieh, a delegate from Michigan, speaks to reporters at a press conference shortly before starting a day-long sit-in across the street from the United Center during the DNC. Alawieh and others were protesting the absence of Palestinian Americans from the DNC’s speakers list. (Photo by Andrew Adams of Capitol News Illinois)
The last night
After concluding a protest outside the convention hall that unsuccessfully called for a Palestinian to speak at the DNC, Abbas Alawieh and other delegates attempt to rejoin the convention. Due to fire safety regulations, many in Allawieh’s group were forced into the hallway, where they continued their protest. (Photo by Andrew Adams for Capitol News Illinois)
Illinois State Police officers present the flags at the start of the final night of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
The Chicago Bulls Pack Drumline performs at the Democratic National Convention. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Former U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, a Republican from Channahon, speaks minutes before Kamala Harris’ keynote speech on the final night of the DNC. Kinzinger, a longtime critic of Donald Trump, is one of the leaders of an advocacy group called “Republicans for Harris.” (Photo by Andrew Adams for Capitol News Illinois)
On the final night of the Democratic National Convention, many delegates and guests – like the delegate pictured – wore white, a color traditionally associated with the women’s suffrage movement. (Photo by Andrew Adams for Capitol News Illinois)
Kamala Harris accepts the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
As balloons fall from the ceiling of the United Center and some fly away, a volunteer waves an American flag. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Balloons fall on delegates seated in the Illinois section of the Democratic National Convention. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that covers state government. It is distributed to hundreds of print and broadcast outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation, with significant contributions from the Illinois Broadcasters Foundation and the Southern Illinois Editorial Association.
