What Went Down On The First Night Of The Democratic National Convention

This could have been much more of a disaster than it was, given gestures vaguely everything. But in the end, the Democrats managed to pull off a fairly smooth first night of virtual rallying that emphasized the sense of urgency many voters feel about this election. It’s undeniably a shift in mood and tone from four years ago, but did we expect anything less?

Two things stood out for me tonight. First, the night’s sharpest and most effective attacks on Trump focused on how Trump’s coronavirus response cost lives. Kristin Urquiza and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo were extremely effective at this. Second, Democrats made strong overtures to Black voters with speeches like Michelle Obama’s and the powerful moment of silence led by George Floyd’s brothers. They know that low Black turnout is a big reason why they lost in 2016.

Michelle Obama shows why she is a powerhouse and the keynote speaker on the first night. She’s the only speaker so far to generate enough volume on Twitter to get past the president, and she stayed much more positively received.