Vice President Kamala Harris is set to give her highly-anticipated acceptance speech this afternoon, closing off the final day at the Democratic National Convention.
Within the address, she will lay out her vision for the country and prosecute her case against Republican nominee Donald Trump. If Harris wins the election in November, she’ll become America’s first ever female president.
Despite serving as the US Vice President, the role can often involve behind the scenes work, so Harris’s campaign have said her goal going into the speech is to reintroduce herself to the American people.
Sharing more on her background, Harris is expected to describe how she was raised by her mother Shyamala who travelled from India to California “with an unshakeable dream to be the scientist who would cure breast cancer”. She will also mention the time she took in a friend after learning she’d been molested by her father.
Harris will use her speech to make a direct appeal to undecided and independent voters, framing the election as a chance “to move past the bitterness, cynicism and divisive battles of the past”.
She will likely contrast her “optimistic” vision with Trump’s “dark” agenda and attempt to evoke a sense of patriotism from the crowd.
In portions of the speech, released early by her campaign and shared by SMH, she’s expected to say:
“I know there are people of various political views watching tonight. And I want you to know: I promise to be a president for all Americans.”
“I will be a president who unites us around our highest aspirations. A president who leads – and listens. Who is realistic. Practical. And has common sense. And always fights for the American people. From the courthouse to the White House, that has been my life’s work.”
“Fellow Americans, I love our country with all my heart. Everywhere I go —in everyone I meet—I see a nation ready to move forward. Ready for the next step, in the incredible journey that is America.
“I see an America where we hold fast to the fearless belief that built our nation. That inspired the world. That here, in this country, anything is possible. Nothing is out of reach.”
Ahead of Harris’s speech, Australian journalist Leigh Sales has predicted that “style” was the element that would “be almost everything” to Harris’s impact.
“That is because many of the people Harris needs to vote for her will never see her full speech, or much of the convention at all,” Sales said.
“They might catch eight seconds — at best, a minute or two — via social media. That’s it.”
The 2024 DNC has managed to pull in a high-profile list of celebrity speakers, including Kerry Washington, Oprah Winfrey, P!nk, The Chicks, John Legend and Stevie Wonder.
President Joe Biden and Harris’s running mate Tim Walz also took the stage. And former president Barack Obama and Michelle Obama made strong appearances as well.
Many women in the DNC arena turned up wearing white – the colour associated with suffragettes who fought for women’s rights to vote.
Before Harris takes to the stage, the DNC also took a moment to address the issue of gun violence in America. reducing deaths by guns is seen as a powerful issue for younger voters and suburban women who hate the fact their children face the reality of being involved in a school shooting.
Former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona, who was shot in the head while meeting with constituents in 2011, took to the stage to touch on the matter.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Witmer and Kamala’s sister Maya Harris gave speeches as well, with Maya touching on the power of their mother’s message towards the sisters that they “could do anything”.
“Kamala knows what it’s like to be the underdog, and yet still beat the odds,” Maya said.
The TV ratings from this week’s DNC speeches are showing more people have tuned in than watched the Republican proceedings in July.