Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
National
Matt Moore

Chicago to host 2024 DNC, NASCAR’s traffic toll and more in your Chicago news roundup

The traditional balloon drop at the conclusion of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Aug. 29, 1996. The DNC announced today that it has selected Chicago to host its 2024 convention. (Richard A. Chapman/Sun-Times file)

Good afternoon. Here’s the latest news you need to know in Chicago. It’s about an eight-minute read that will brief you on today’s biggest stories.

— Matt Moore (@MattKenMoore)

Weather 🌤️

This afternoon will be mostly sunny with a high near 78 degrees. Tonight will be partly cloudy with a low near 58. Tomorrow will be sunny with a high near 83.


Top story

Chicago to host 2024 Democratic National Convention

The Democratic National Committee selected Chicago to host the 2024 Democratic National Convention, the Sun-Times has learned, with the city beating bids from Atlanta and New York.

The convention will take place Aug. 19-22 next year. It is expected to draw between 5,000 and 7,000 delegates and alternates and attract up to 50,000 visitors to Chicago.

Evening events will be at the United Center — the main site of the 1996 Democratic convention in Chicago — with daytime business to be conducted at the McCormick Place Convention Center, the location of the 2012 NATO Summit.

Delegates will be housed in about 30 hotels in Chicago.

For more than a year, Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., a co-chair of the Democratic National Committee, and Mayor Lori Lightfoot have led a drive for Chicago to host the Democrats in 2024.

President Joe Biden called Pritzker to tell him about Chicago’s selection on Tuesday morning before leaving for Ireland.

Biden also phoned Duckworth before he took off to tell her about Chicago’s winning bid. DNC Chair Jamie Harrison called Lightfoot and Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson got a call from the White House.

Biden has been planning to seek a second term with his team putting together his reelection campaign. He will make an “official” announcement at a later date.

By selecting Chicago for the convention, Democrats are highlighting the importance of the Midwest “Blue Wall” states — Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota. The governors in these states, all Democrats, were all reelected in 2022.

Our Lynn Sweet has more on why and how Chicago was picked.


More news you need


A bright one ☀️

Suburban TikTok gardener Ebony Jamison, AKA Brownskinbeautiful, has some ideas to help with your gardening

For Ebony Jamison — known to her 70,000 followers on social media as BrownSkinBeautiful — gardening started as a pandemic hobby.

The Chicago-area photographer and mother of two already had 26 plants in her home. Then, after a friend raved about outdoor gardening, Jamison decided to try it in her own suburban backyard.

“My kids got super-involved and invested in gardening with me,” Jamison says. “It became our pandemic activity and a way to get some fresh air but also a learning experience for all of us.”

She started getting messages from people sharing their own gardening experiences and soon found followers on social media who also were beginner gardeners.

Ebony Jamison (left) started backyard gardening as a pandemic hobby with her children. Now, the suburban Chicago resident has attracted a social media following with her TikTok gardening exploits and tips. (Provided)

Gardening tool brands like Little Burros took notice and signed her for product campaigns. She’d happened on something that surprised her: an audience captivated by her adventures in gardening.

Jamison started out small, planting tomatoes, cucumbers and bell peppers in a raised garden bed four feet by eight feet in her backyard.

She suggests that beginners and city-dwellers do something similar or try growing things like tomatoes and cucumbers in pots.

“It’s easier to control as far as fertilizer and nutrition of the soil is concerned,” she says. “It also helps cut back on the amount of weeding I have to do, which can be a real pain.”

WBEZ’s Samantha Callender has more with Jamison and her work.


From the press box


Your daily question☕

How do you feel about Chicago hosting the 2024 Democratic National Convention?

Send us an email at newsletters@suntimes.com and we might feature your answer in the next Afternoon Edition.

Yesterday we asked you: Are you in a relationship with someone with differing political views from you? How has that affected your relationship?

Here’s what some of you said…

“We had to stop talking about politics. Talking about our differing views caused too many arguments. I admit to starting many fights. It’s hard for me to think about my spouse being so awful, but I’m too old for a major lifestyle change. We have an uneasy peace.” — Denise Lindberg

“We don’t discuss politics or religion, still works 20+ years later.” — Zeljka Dekic

“I dumped my fiance 11 years ago because of it.” — Ivey McClelland

“Yes, and we are just fine with having differing views. That’s what’s great about America — we each get our own political views and vote the way we want. Btw, we have been together for almost 30 years.” — Greta Berna

“I was for years. We chose to not judge each other because of a difference of opinion. That is until the in-laws incited in-fighting.” — Walter Diffee


Thanks for reading the Chicago Sun-Times Afternoon Edition. Got a story you think we missed? Email us here.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.