2004 Democratic National Convention

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John Kerry, here at a campaign rally in New Mexico, was nominated as a Democratic candidate in Boston.

The Democratic National Convention in 2004 was the nominating convention of the Democratic Party of the United States ahead of the US presidential election in 2004 . The convention was held at the Fleet Center in Boston , Massachusetts . It lasted from July 26th to July 29th, 2004. 4,353 delegates attended. At the party convention, John Kerry , US Senator from Massachusetts, was nominated as the official Democratic presidential candidate and thus the challenger to the Republican incumbent George W. Bush in the 2004 presidential election.

motto

"Stronger at home, respected in the world" and in various variations (Strong instead of Stronger, in campaign speeches also "Strong at home and respected in the world")

"Stronger at home and respected in the world"

Venue

The Fleet Center is right next to the Faneuil Hall (meeting place for American abolitionists).

Speaker

Keynote speaker

Of the main speeches, the acceptance address of John Kerry and the keynote address of Barack Obama received a lot of attention. Obama, until then largely unknown outside of Illinois, first received wide attention at the national level and was now seen as his party's hope for the future.

Other speakers

The appearance of Ron Reagan, the youngest son of the Republican ex-President Ronald Reagan, who died a few weeks earlier after a long period of Alzheimer's disease , attracted particular attention . Ron Reagan advocated increased funding for research on embryonic stem cells . In doing so, he made a demand that was supported by Kerry but rejected by Bush.

Result of the vote

Dennis Kucinich in conversation with peace activists at a demonstration on the sidelines of the party congress.

Contents of the party congress

Among other things, the so-called anti-terror war of the USA, to which John Kerry and John Edwards professed their fundamental rights, as well as irregularities in the counting of votes for the 2000 election, which according to a report would have led to a disadvantage for minorities, were discussed. Kerry underlined the requirement that every vote should be counted.

On labor market policy, Kerry said several times that George W. Bush had destroyed jobs and hardly created any new ones. Tax policy called for the tax cut for the rich (defined as people who earn more than $ 200,000 a month) to be reversed and for the middle class to be cut.

As expected, the Democrats reiterated their intention to replace President Bush and were optimistic that they could achieve that goal. Kerry and Edwards said "Hope is on the way" several times in this context.

Security for delegates

This party congress had stronger security measures than any other in US history. A $ 60 million security package was passed by Congress. Security precautions:

  • A safety zone was set up 1 km around the Fleet Center
  • Regulation of traffic in and out of the city
  • Searching the mail and luggage of all commuters
  • Sealing of manhole covers
  • Closure of major roads

Media volume

Some TV channels reported four hours a day, news channels even 18 hours a day from the party conference. Reporters were sent to the "war rooms" (rooms where representatives of opposing parties, Republicans and Democrats, responded to what the speakers said).

supporting documents

  1. ↑ Article by Randal C. Archibold in the New York Times, July 29, 2004 , accessed online May 24, 2008.

Web links

Wikisource: Speeches by Barack Obama, Al Gore and John Kerry  - sources and full texts