While the Democratic Party has nearly unanimously agreed on the Harris-Walz ticket, many Republicans and other critics argue that Democrats—who say that defending democracy is the party’s top priority—have chosen a process of ascension that bypasses typical Democratic norms and recent American political precedents. Never in American history has a party changed its candidates so late (Johnson announced in March 1968, during the primaries, that he would not run). Biden was elected party leader in an unopposed process (except for Dean Phillips) in which an overwhelming majority of primary voters (though only a small portion of all voters) chose him. Then, by many accounts due to intense pressure from “party insiders,” Biden resigned, arguably disregarding the will of those primary voters. With no substantive competition among the alternatives, Harris quickly rose to the top of the ballot. Does this pose a problem for American democracy? Will this unorthodox path to the nomination raise further doubts about the integrity of the American democratic process? Or is the assumption that political parties must have democratic characteristics simply a mistake, because democracy should be defended in competition between parties, not within them?
The virtual Part of this event will end with the conclusion of the panel discussion at 1 p.m. For those attending the event personalThe panel discussion will be live streamed in Seminar Room 225 of the Ash Center and there will be an optional debriefing session with Archon Fung following the panel discussion from 1:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
This event will be part of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Open and Constructive Conversations series in fall 2024. The Open and Constructive Conversations (CCC) initiative provides regular opportunities for HKS students, staff, and faculty to learn and practice skills for constructive disagreement across differences, with the goal of making all members of our community feel heard and respected. As a school-wide initiative for the next generation of officials and leaders, CCC programming aims to create an environment of openness, humility, and respect to support the rich exchange of ideas within the HKS learning community. The in-person portion of this event is open to Only Harvard ID card holders and lunch is provided.
