With only a long weekend to recover, journalists barely had time to recharge their iPhones before heading to Philadelphia, where the Democrats were holding their annual political shindig. This was going to be a far more sophisticated and cordial affair than the Trumpathon hosted by the Republicans, right? Wrong. 

In contrast to the Republican event, expectations surrounding this convention were fairly high. The list of guest speakers felt more ‘VIP’, with presidents and Hollywood A-listers signed up to blow Hillary’s trumpet. Furthermore, the tone was likely to be more positive: the Party’s outlook for the future less ‘doom and gloom’ more ‘diversity and gratitude’.

These expectations were swiftly dampened when, three days before the gavel was set to drop, those pesky folks over at WikiLeaks released thousands of emails (establishment Democrats: time for a new medium!) from high-ranking members of the Democratic National Committee. The correspondence revealed, as Bernie Sanders supporters have complained for months, that the DNC favoured Hillary Clinton and discussed tactics to ensure Sanders did not gain the nomination.

Subsequent public outrage prompted the chair of the DNC and host of the convention, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, to announce that she would step down from her role once the event was over. However, after bouts of intense booing caused major disruption at her pre-convention speech (and a rumoured phone call from Obama) Schultz declared she was resigning with immediate effect.

Thus, the opening day of the Democratic convention was marred by continuous vocal protests from Sanders supporters. To make matters worse, poor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake (the Mayor of Baltimore, drafted in at the last minute to take over Schultz’s hosting duties) forgot to actually ‘gavel in’ proceedings. This was not off to a smooth start.

Influence of the Left

The rowdy elements of the progressive wing of the Party made their dissatisfaction apparent throughout the convention. A number of speeches were drowned out by boos and interrupted by protests against the controversial TPP trade agreement. When progressive sweetheart Elizabeth Warren took to the stage there were chants of “we trusted you!” as she confirmed her support for Hillary Clinton. Even Bernie Sanders, the catalyst and hero of this ‘revolution’, faced boos during a DNC speech before his prime time appearance. The movement has indeed become bigger than the man.

Despite the uncomfortable scenes of the opening day, surveys of voters suggest that Democrats shouldn’t worry too much about divisions in the Party harming their chances in the election. A recent study by Pew indicated that among “Democratic voters who consistently backed Sanders (…) 90% favour Clinton” in the general election. This suggests that the so-called ‘Bernie or Bust’ individuals (who refuse to rally behind Hillary) only constitute a vocal minority of Sanders’ supporters.

What was clear at the convention is that Hillary Clinton recognises the need to appeal to these disaffected members of the Party. Bernie Sanders was praised by a number of speakers for energising the Party base and bringing new supporters into the fold. Furthermore, it was evident that the Vermont Senator has heavily influenced Democratic policy, with issues he has been highlighting – such as raising the minimum wage to $15 and working towards free college tuition – written into the Party’s platform.

Influence of the Right

While left-wing interests were appealed to through policy, the tone and overall message of the convention appeared to be geared towards attracting Independents and Republicans. What was particularly notable throughout the four days was the Democrats’ wholehearted, unapologetic embrace of patriotism. There were repeated references to American exceptionalism, rousing speeches from military leaders and a seemingly never-ending wave of US flags distributed all over the arena. The intensity of this America love-fest pushed a number of commentators to remark that this looked and felt more like a Republican convention. And perhaps that was the point. Many Republicans feel that Donald Trump has hijacked their Party. Hillary Clinton is attempting to offer a more palatable alternative. The balancing act she has to master is shaping a campaign that is attractive to disillusioned Republicans, while satisfying left-leaning voters who still value the progressive ideals promoted by the Sanders camp.

At least one half of the approach is working – in the past week Richard Hanna, Representative for New York, has become the first Republican Congressman to endorse Hillary Clinton. He is being joined by a growing list of Republican fundraisers and advisors. These detractions have been spurred on by Trump’s inability to resist reacting to criticism, a character flaw that last week led to an incredibly damaging feud with the father of a Muslim soldier killed in Iraq.

There may be discord within the ranks of both parties, but after two raucous conventions, opposition to Donald Trump is creating some unusual alliances.  For the Democrats, these strange bedfellows might be the key to a winning combination in November.

Header Image by A. Shaker, courtesy of VOA