Maybe it’s the fraught state of social affairs in America, maybe it’s our collectively enhanced awareness of US politics, but it feels like the Democratic National Convention has never been quite so compelling. Well, apart from that one in 1924 where attendees took 16 days to select a candidate.
In case it’s not clear, the Democratic National Convention is an event that takes place every four years, primarily with the intention of selecting a presidential candidate and uniting the party.
One hundred years on and the dramatics are very different. As are the attendees. The New Republic wrote that 1924’s conference was made up of “virtually all white and overwhelmingly male” guests and politicians.
Now, as the first woman of Black and South Asian heritage is selected as the democratic presidential nominee, we’re seeing attendees wearing “twinks for Kamala” T-shirts, a TikTok famous Kennedy is making a speech and rapper Lil Jon is announcing the Georgia roll-call by performing Turn Down for What. Regardless of your politics, to anyone with a heart and a sense of humour it’s undeniably enjoyable chaos.
So, without further ado, here are the five surprising victors of the Democratic National Convention.
1. Jack Schlossberg
Jack Schlossberg, full name John Bouvier Kennedy Schlossberg, is John F. Kennedy’s only grandson. And he’s TikTok famous. In case you’ve never seen his videos, his shtick is being weird and zany and hot. Because like it or not, he is despicably hot. In an old, Ivy League American way you rarely see nowadays. His face belongs in sepia. Incels would kill for that jawline.
Looks aside, Schloss has made quite a name for himself in democratic circles as a figure beloved by Gen Z, therefore he holds hitherto unknown secrets about the minds of the youth. He’s been TikTokking his DNC experience, including a vaguely out of sync performance of Olivia Rodrigo’s Good 4 U in his car, in which he knows 40 per cent of the lyrics, a meet-cute with Eva Longoria and a video of him walking on a Chicago beach to heavy metal music.
@jack.schlossberg Good 4 u by Olivia Rodrigo
♬ original sound - Jack Schlossberg
But Schlossberg’s best moment from the DNC came when he invoked his grandfather, JFK, in a speech he made endorsing Kamala Harris. Harris, he said, shares “my grandfather’s energy, vision, and optimism for America.”
2. Twinks for Kamala
Political merch these days is more important than ever. It’s no secret that the impact of the Make America Great Again hats was astounding for Trump, as they became one of the most recognisable and successful pieces of political branding since Barack Obama’s “Hope” era of 2008.
The Kamala/Walz campaign has attempted to break into the hat game with a camo cap that bears a confusing (yet Gen Z pleasing) similarity to the merch of up-and-coming pop star Chappell Roan.
omg pic.twitter.com/wsekeELq9I
— jack jack (@Jackles95) August 21, 2024
And yet, their most powerful piece of merch may be entirely unaffiliated with the campaign. It was a T-shirt worn by one young gentleman in the crowd, caught on camera during some of the coverage, And it read: “Twinks for Kamala”. For those who don’t know: a twink is a young, attractive gay man.
3. Tim Walz and his lovely, weeping family
Kamala’s running partner, vice presidential hopeful Tim Walz, has been a pretty unknown figure across the pond — until now. Walz’s speech on Wednesday night announced him to the world, and what a speech it was.
The Governor of Minnesota and former teacher (and high school football coach) walked out to overwhelming applause at the Convention centre, with Walz’s family in the front row already emotional over the sheer support he was receiving.
After Walz provided a rallying speech to the crowd — one which has been unanimously accepted as a complete win for the campaign — he turned again to his family. He talked about his wife Gwen, and their journey having kids with IVF treatment.
“When our daughter was born, we named her Hope,” he said. “Hope, Gus and Gwen, you are my entire world, and I love you.” The camera cuts to his family, all overcome with proud tears. “That’s my dad!” Gus, who is neurodivergent and has an ADHD and non-verbal disorder, could be seen mouthing. Not a dry eye in the house.
4. Dana Nessel and her ‘cold, dead, gay hand’
Another rousing speech came from Dana Nessel, the Attorney General of Michigan, who isn’t necessarily a huge name, but boy did she give a huge speech. While praising Kamala Harris’s work as an attorney general for the state of California she noted how Harris had held accountable “environmental polluters, sexual abusers and transnational gangs.”
She then turned to Harris’s refusal to defend the ban on same sex marriage in California. “She refused to argue that some families have fewer rights than other families,” Nessel said. Then she got personal. “It meant a lot,” she said, “she was fighting for families like mine.”
The applause grew, and Nessel delivered the killer line. “By the way, I’ve got a message to the Republicans and the justices of the United States Supreme Court. You can pry this wedding band from my cold, dead, gay hand.” The crowd went wild.
5. Lil Jon
Of all the viral moments from the Democratic National Convention, none appear to have quite the reach of Lil Jon. The Atlanta-born rapper made a surprise appearance for roll-call, where each state and US territory announces the votes its delegates will give to each candidate.
Lil Jon popped up during Georgia’s roll-call to support his state, and gave an impromptu performance of 2013 smash hit “Turn Down for What”. He might not have been the surprise celebrity endorsement we expected from the DNC, but boy did he make an impact. And it’s all the more dramatic when you look back on the rapper’s history with Trump.
You may not remember, but Lil Jon appeared on Trump’s Celebrity Apprentice in 2011 and All Star Celebrity Apprentice in 2013, making it to the final both times. But when Trump delved into politics, Lil Jon distanced himself from the then-presidential hopeful, criticising his extreme views.
“I don’t agree with many of the statements Mr. Trump has said during his current run for President,” he said in 2016. By 2020, he’d gotten a bit firmer. When asked if he’d support Trump’s race for re-election against Biden, he wrote: “HOW ABOUT F*** NOOOOOO.”
