Stay Connected“The Run-Up” is your guide to understanding the 2024 election. Host Astead W. Herndon talks to the people whose decisions will make the difference.
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After two days of the Democratic National Convention, one thing is clear.
Democrats are united behind their new nominee.
And Kamala Harris has those in the Democratic Party, from the high-profile speakers to the delegates in the hall, thinking they can win.
In fact, the unity is such that after months of worrying about whether the convention would be upended by protests over Israel’s war in Gaza, so far, things feel quiet.
But does anger over foreign policy still pose an electoral threat?
On today’s show, a conversation with Abbas Alawieh, an uncommitted delegate from Michigan, and people who came to Chicago to protest.
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Last night, thousands of people gathered in Chicago for the first night of the Democratic National Convention. And the crowd at the United Center was ready for a party.
The evening featured a cameo from their candidate, Vice President Kamala Harris, and speeches from Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and, closing out the night, President Biden.
Before he could begin his speech, he received a sustained round of applause — more than four minutes long.
It was just one memorable moment over the course of an evening that was both a goodbye party and kickoff event.
The Run-Up is coming to you from the D.N.C. all week.
Today: Night One in Chicago, where the Democrats attempted to reclaim a certain expression of patriotism, and gave thanks to Mr. Biden.
On today’s episode:
Reid Epstein, a politics correspondent for The New York Times.
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The Democratic National Convention kicks off in Chicago today, less than a month after Democrats changed their nominee in a remarkable political shake-up. To get set for the week, “The Run-Up” talks with Leah Daughtry, an at-large member of the Democratic National Committee, the chief executive of the 2008 and 2016 Democratic National Conventions and a co-chair of the convention rules committee, an incredibly significant role this year given the nominee switch.
She is the ultimate Democratic Party insider. And she is also remarkably candid and straightforward, particularly when it comes to providing insight on how party leaders make decisions.
Today, a conversation with Ms. Daughtry about how the Democratic Party got to this unusual moment — and what to expect from the convention.
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For much of the 2024 presidential election, it felt like there were pretty ideal conditions for a third-party candidate. Republicans and Democrats had both lined up behind broadly unpopular — and familiar — candidates. In the spring, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was polling at 10 percent in The New York Times/Siena College survey of battleground states, and sustained interest in his candidacy was enough to raise alarm among his major-party rivals.
As that alarm grew, the Run-Up team traveled to Royal Oak, Mich., for a Kennedy campaign event to ask people how they were thinking about a third-party vote when the stakes for that decision were so high.
Since that visit, a lot has changed in the race. There’s a new name on top of the Democratic ticket. And a lot has changed in Mr. Kennedy’s campaign, too. But third-party interest among voters who are sick of the system or wary of both parties remains.
On today’s show: what made RFK Jr. such a threatening spoiler — and how the RFK-curious in a crucial state are thinking about the race now.
For more on RFK Jr., listen to Astead's interview with the candidate in March.
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On Tuesday afternoon, just hours after Vice President Harris announced that Tim Walz, governor of Minnesota, would be her running mate, Astead sat down with Senator Bernie Sanders in Burlington, Vt.
Mr. Sanders, the Vermont progressive who has twice run for president himself, supported the choice of Mr. Walz.
But a Harris-Walz ticket was not what he was envisioning for 2024. He was a staunch defender of President Biden remaining in the race, arguing that Mr. Biden was best positioned to defeat former president Donald Trump.
Now, since Mr. Biden bowed out and Ms. Harris has stepped in, Mr. Sanders has raised questions about what the Harris campaign’s economic message will be and how she will position herself.
More recently though, Mr. Sanders has been on the campaign trail for Ms. Harris.
His journey is indicative of a larger question facing the progressive wing of the Democratic Party — a question we explore today.
With this new Democratic ticket, are progressives all in for Harris?
On today’s episode: Senator Bernie Sanders, independent of Vermont
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It has been less than two weeks since President Biden dropped his re-election bid and threw his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris.
Already, Ms. Harris has closed the gap with former President Donald J. Trump in some national polls. The Harris campaign said it had raised more than $200 million in a week. Ms. Harris’s supporters even broke attendance records on Zoom, with one group gathering more than 160,000 people on a single call.
After more than a year of a presidential contest that was defined by its stability — and people who said they really didn’t like their options — there has been a clear vibe shift.
With just under 100 days left until Election Day, we wanted to check in on this brand-new race. We spoke to Zoom rally organizers, first-time campaign donors and people who were previously planning to sit the whole thing out.
Where did the new energy come from, and how sustainable is it?
Do you have a question about the 2024 election? We want to hear from you. Fill out this form or email us at therunup@nytimes.com
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Warning: this episode contains strong language and mentions of sexual abuse.
Since 2019, our host, Astead Herndon, has been reporting on Kamala Harris — from her campaign for the 2020 Democratic nomination to her time as vice president. Over the years, the same questions have swirled around her.
What does she stand for? How does she make decisions? Was she only selected as President Biden’s running mate because of her race and gender?
Today, Ms. Harris is the presumptive Democratic nominee after Mr. Biden decided to withdraw from the 2024 race. Americans are once again looking at Ms. Harris as their potential president.
And on “The Run-Up,” we wanted to play two excerpts from conversations that get at those essential questions. One is with a longtime friend of Ms. Harris. And one is with the vice president herself.
On today’s episode:
Senator Laphonza Butler, Democrat of California
Vice President Kamala Harris
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When it finally happened, it felt both inevitable, and unfathomable.
President Biden was out of the 2024 presidential race.
Shortly after making that announcement, he threw his support behind his vice president, Kamala Harris, to be the next Democratic nominee.
Mr. Biden had finally fulfilled his promise to be a bridge to the next generation — albeit under enormous pressure.
Ms. Harris issued a statement later in the day, saying that she was honored to have received President Biden’s endorsement and that she intends to “earn and win” the nomination.
Today, in a special episode of The Run-Up, a top democratic donor discusses what ultimately toppled the Biden campaign and a colleague gives us an inside look at where Democrats go next.
On today's show:
Robert Wolf, a Democratic donor
Reid Epstein, a politics correspondent for The New York Times.
Do you have a question about the 2024 election? We want to hear from you. Fill out this form or email us at therunup@nytimes.com
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Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the U.S.A.” has become former President Donald J. Trump’s unofficial theme music on the campaign trail. Here at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, the song was performed live by none other than Mr. Greenwood himself, as Mr. Trump walked into the arena on Monday.
The anthem, released in 1984, is essentially a song about togetherness and the diversity of the United States. And it’s now become tied to a candidate who has often represented division and chaos.
As Mr. Trump is set to deliver the culminating address at the convention today with a newfound message of unity, we explore that message — through the song that has become his soundtrack.
We talk to Republicans, including Mr. Greenwood, about what defines American values and whether those values are reflected in the candidacy of Mr. Trump.
On today’s episode:
Lee Greenwood, country music star
Do you have a question about the 2024 election? We want to hear from you. Fill out this form or email us at therunup@nytimes.com
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On the second day of the Republican National Convention, a collection of Donald Trump’s former challengers took the stage. There were people who ran against him in 2016 — like Ted Cruz, Ben Carson and Marco Rubio. And people who just challenged him this year — Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis and Vivek Ramaswamy.
No matter how fervently, or recently, they had criticized him, all voiced their support for him and emphasized a message of unity.
For analysis of Night 2 of the R.N.C., and this parade of Trump rivals turned boosters, Astead is joined by his Times Audio colleague Michael Barbaro, host of “The Daily.”
Do you have a question about the 2024 election? We want to hear from you. Fill out this form or email us at therunup@nytimes.com
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