Chicago was selected Tuesday to host the 2024 Democratic National Convention, a huge economic and prestigious post-pandemic boon, and an acknowledgment the city’s progressive, pro-union values align with a Democratic Party that is seeking to boost its strength in a politically competitive Midwest.
Chicago, which last hosted the convention in 1996, was selected over Atlanta and New York to host the anticipated renomination of President Joe Biden. Though the choice was announced by the Democratic National Committee, the selection rested with Biden.
The president, in a statement, called Chicago “a great choice” for the convention as the DNC cited a Midwestern “blue wall” of states — Illinois, Michigan and Minnesota — as crucial to Biden’s 2020 victory and to Democratic midterm victories last year.
“Democrats will gather to showcase our historic progress including building an economy from the middle out and bottom up, not from the top down,” Biden said. “From repairing our roads and bridges, to unleashing a manufacturing boom, and creating over 12.5 million new good-paying jobs, we’ve already delivered so much for hard working Americans — now it’s time to finish the job.”
Biden delivered a congratulatory phone call to Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who spearheaded the push for the convention as the president departed for a trip to Ireland.
“He has had such success as president and deserves to be celebrated. And at the same time, we have so many things here in Illinois that show off the Biden agenda — that we’ve protected reproductive rights and banned assault weapons and that we’ve protected collective bargaining rights,” Pritzker said in an interview. “So, you know, just there’s a lot to brag about when you’re standing in Chicago and showing off what Democratic values means to the country.”
With Democrats selecting a reliably blue Illinois to host the Aug. 19-22, 2024, convention, with activities concentrated at the United Center, Republicans will convene a month earlier and 80 miles to the north in Milwaukee. The GOP convention location underscores Republican efforts to break up a Midwest regional Democratic bloc — particularly after last week’s victory by Democrat Janet Protasiewicz that flipped the GOP’s control on the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
Hosting a national in-person political convention remains a big economic prize even though it lacks the luster of past history-making gatherings. Conventions now more than ever resemble little more than highly scripted TV productions, particularly the most recent duo during the pandemic 2020 presidential election year when in-person contact was avoided by both Democratic and Republican gatherings.
Still, an estimated 50,000 people — including 5,000 nominating delegates as well as media members and party high rollers — are expected to attend the 2024 event, filling restaurant and entertainment venues and contributing an estimated $200 million to the economy. It is hoped the convention will provide an important lift as the city’s hospitality industry recovers from the pandemic years.
Michael Jacobson, president and CEO of the Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association, said on Tuesday that Chicago’s extensive experience hosting large-scale conventions and availability to host all guests near convention venues likely helped Chicago secure the convention over other cities.
While the Democratic convention is high-profile, the 50,000 visitors it is expected to draw isn’t bigger than other conventions regularly held in Chicago. The biennial International Manufacturing Technology Show, for instance, welcomes nearly 130,000 visitors, Jacobson said.
“A 50,000-person convention is bread and butter for us. Not to undercut the work that needs to be done, but we won’t need new buildings, we won’t need new infrastructure because we do this all the time,” he said.
“Look at this 30 to 60 days in 2024: as things are planned, we’re going to have a NASCAR race, the DNC and Lollapalooza back to back to back. What other city can say, ‘We got this,'” he asked.
Jacobson said the industry expected a full recovery to pre-pandemic occupancy in 2026, but “if we keep getting wins like we got today, that might be accelerated.”
Bob Reiter, president of the Chicago Federation of Labor, which had touted the city’s unionized hotel workforce against a lack of union hotels in Atlanta, called the choice “incredible for labor” and “the alignment between labor’s values and the DNC’s values around working people.”
“If you’re looking at it tactically, it just highlights how important the Midwest and working people will be to this upcoming presidential election,” he said.
The city’s selection came a week after Brandon Johnson, a former teacher, teachers’ union organizer and a county commissioner, was elected mayor on a progressive agenda.
Though defeated in her bid for reelection, outgoing Mayor Lori Lightfoot sought to take a belated victory lap of sorts, thanking her city team and adding, “I’m proud that we got it done for the people of Chicago.”
The event next year will create a significant early test for a new mayor — who has never held an executive government position and who will be a little more than a year into office when it convenes — as his city is featured on a national and global stage that could define his tenure.
Johnson, in an interview, said he thought Biden’s decision was an affirmation of his mayoral campaign and the city’s historic role in not only unionism but the civil rights movement.
“Look, you have an incredible convergence here of labor and civil rights coming together. It is a manifestation of what a generation ago dreamed of. If that’s worth anything, I would hope that is the best part of our Democratic values that believes that’s why the city of Chicago should host the Democratic National Convention,” Johnson recalled telling Biden in a postelection congratulatory call.
“I’m going to work hard to continue to convene and bring people together around a very exciting moment for not just the city of Chicago but really the entire Midwestern region,” Johnson said of the city’s selection.
“There’s been a great deal of talk about the ‘blue wall,’ if you will, this very strong place where working-class values are front and center. It’s going to take a collaborative effort to continue to build a better, stronger city, but, you know, our entire region,” Johnson said. “I’m going to work very hard to make sure that the benefits of this convention reach the neighborhoods … that everyone gets to participate in this moment, and that’s what I ran on. Those are my values and, quite frankly, those are the values of our party.”
Asked about dealing with crime and security concerns, Johnson, whose opponent was backed by the Chicago Fraternal Order of Police, echoed his campaign statements that “public safety is going to take a comprehensive approach.”
Even before Johnson’s mayoral candidacy, the push for a Chicago political convention was driven by Pritzker, a billionaire entrepreneur who also has been a major donor to Democratic candidates and causes nationally.
Pritzker, who was reelected last year, and city business and labor leaders in March pledged they could underwrite the estimated $100 million in convention costs to avoid passing expenses along to the Democratic National Committee or local taxpayers.
Pritzker and others also enlisted support from Midwest governors, congresspersons, mayors and other elected officials backing Chicago as representative of the states that have been key to past Democratic presidential victories, which Pritzker pointed out in a letter sent last month to Biden and other top national Democrats.
“The combination of Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois has voted to send a Democrat to the White House since 1992 with only one exception: In 2016, Donald Trump’s unexpected victory relied upon 80,000 votes in just three states, including fewer than 34,000 votes combined in Michigan and Wisconsin,” the letter said. “That single exception proves the rule: When the future of the country hangs in the balance, we cannot afford to overlook the Midwest.”
Pritzker had stirred speculation that he was available if Biden did not seek reelection. But the 2024 convention also provides the two-term Illinois governor with a major promotional platform if he decides to launch a future national campaign.
In an interview, Pritzker said getting the convention and being able to showcase Illinois under Democratic leadership and values is “an important marker in our history and for the Democratic Party.”
“Are you for the workers? Are you for women making decisions for themselves? Are you for protecting our children? I think these positions that Democrats stand for, those matter to middle class and even to moderate voters in the suburbs and throughout the state and the country,” Pritzker said. “I’m really excited about the fact that Chicago and Illinois get to represent what it is the Democrats really stand for because I think that’s where the country is.”
The 2024 Democratic convention will arrive 28 years after Chicago last hosted a political convention in 1996 when Democrats renominated President Bill Clinton.
Interestingly enough, the 1996 Democratic convention was exactly 28 years after the infamous 1968 Democratic National Convention when protesters opposed to the Vietnam War filled the streets of Chicago and made international headlines as violence broke out between the protesters and police backed by then-Mayor Richard J. Daley.
Chicago was snubbed by both political parties after the “Days of Rage” and the city wasn’t even considered for another convention until Daley’s son, Mayor Richard M. Daley, made a concerted effort to bring a convention to town in 1996 and hold it at the United Center, which at the time was only 2 years old.
Other than a now-notorious spectacle at the end of the convention where politicians danced the Macarena, the 1996 convention went on without major incident and Clinton went on to win a second term as he defeated Republican U.S. Sen. Bob Dole of Kansas.
For 2024, while the United Center — home to the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks — is the main site, ancillary events are slated for Wintrust Arena and McCormick Place in the South Loop.
Ald. Brendan Reilly, 42nd, whose ward includes much of downtown and River North, said in a message to the Tribune that “the timing could not be better to land an impactful deal like this one” for the city’s hotels, restaurants, bars and cultural institutions.
“In 1996, the Democratic National Convention delivered a number of legacy infrastructure investments on the near West Side that served as a catalyst for future development and growth in those neighborhoods,” Reilly said, a reference to the renovated Madison Street, including an overpass fitted with red Chicago stars and other projects like the spruced-up bridges over the Chicago River, and other beautification efforts across the city undertaken by Daley at the time.
“I believe this convention promises to reinvigorate our Central Business District and will present even more opportunities to make key investments that will spur future growth and economic development in neighborhood commercial corridors,” he said.
In a news release, United Center co-chairs Jerry Reinsdorf and Rocky Wirtz said the arena “proudly served as the epicenter of the 1996 DNC and we are ready for a repeat performance.”
They also shared a promotional video with the tagline “See Yourself Here” with supercuts from the last DNC, as well as highlights from past Bulls and Blackhawks seasons, concerts, and appearances from Oprah Winfrey and Michelle Obama.
Ald.-elect Bill Conway, 34th, whose new ward covers the western portion of the Loop, South Loop and parts of the West Loop just outside the United Center, described the announcement as “an exciting win.”
“As the center of the labor movement and progressive leadership, Chicago is the perfect venue to host the DNC, and I’m excited to work with other stakeholders to celebrate our city and give downtown the shot in the arm we need.”
Atlanta had been viewed as Biden’s sentimental favorite for hosting the convention due to the role Georgia played in helping secure his election as president as well as the recent pivotal Democratic victories in the state for U.S. Senate. Biden previously approved moving Georgia into the early state presidential primary nominating calendar.
Atlanta was the site of the Democratic convention in 1988, when Gov. Michael Dukakis of Massachusetts was nominated for president. Dukakis lost to the Republican nominee, then-Vice President George H.W. Bush.
But as Georgia made its bid, it came under fire from organized labor for having few hotels operating with a union workforce and for the state’s “right-to-work” laws, which do not compel union membership for jobs.
Major labor unions, New York’s congressional delegation and the Chicago Federation of Labor each lobbed criticism at Atlanta, with the CFL running a digital ad promoting Chicago as “the hometown of the American labor movement.”
New York made pugnacious pitches to get the convention, including a seven-minute video narrated by actress and talk show host Whoopi Goldberg that appeared to take jabs at Chicago, including calling New York “one of the safest big cities in America,” a pointed shot at Chicago’s crime problems.
New York also offered discounted theater and museum tickets, restaurant prices and travel as part of its pitch to bring the convention to Madison Square Garden as well as using the Jacob Javits Center. Madison Square Garden hosted the renomination of President George W. Bush in 2004.
At a Times Square rally on March 18, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine tossed a dart at the food scenes in Chicago and Atlanta.
“If you want to go out to dinner at Cracker Barrel, you can go to one of the other host cities. If you want to enjoy the best restaurants on Earth, you come to New York City,” Levine said.
Chicago Tribune’s Alice Yin contributed.
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