Texas Dems embrace a virtual convention; would it work here?
A virtual speech Saturday from virtual nominee Joe Biden closed out the nation’s biggest virtual political convention, as Texas Democrats wrapped up a party gathering for the pandemic era.
They also offered a preview of what may be in store for the Democratic National Convention planned for
Milwaukee in August.
More than 10,000 Democratic delegates in Texas and far more viewers online participated in the six-day all-virtual event, streamed on Facebook Live, YouTube and other platforms.
“Hello, Texas Democrats, in case you’re wondering, I’m on my back porch in our made-up studio here, and it’s as hot as the devil. That’s why I don’t have a coat and tie on. And I wish we were all together this year under different circumstances meeting, rather than this way,” Biden said.
Biden’s prerecorded remarks, streamed to the convention Saturday afternoon, were preceded by remarks Friday from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and California Sen. Kamala Harris.
None of those speakers delivered their messages live and in person, since
Texas Democrats did not physically gather, as they had once planned to do in San Antonio.
“It is a privilege to join your virtual convention,” Pelosi told Texas Democrats. “I look forward to a time when we can get together.”
Because of the coronavirus crisis, Texas did what more than 20 other
Democratic state parties are doing this year (including Wisconsin later this month) and staged a digital gathering. Participants called it “bittersweet” not to be meeting in person but touted their event as an overdue re-invention of the traditional convention that was both safe and — they said — more effective in some ways as an organizing vehicle.
At a virtual news conference organized by Texas Democrats, Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez was asked by a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter what the national party was learning from the remote conventions being staged by state parties around the country.
Perez said those events “reflect the moment” and that organizers of the August convention in Milwaukee have been given the flexibility to follow the science about the pandemic.
“We don’t know the precise contours of what the Milwaukee convention will be yet, but we will make sure it’s safe, inspiring and Wisconsin-y,” said Perez, who added, “I’m looking forward to being in Milwaukee the week of Aug. 17.”
The Texas event was an enormous undertaking, with scores of speakers and panel discussions available on a publicly accessible livestream, while the party business of rules, resolutions, training and electronic elections was conducted separately among delegates via Zoom and Facebook.
Democratic politicians and activists answered questions submitted by journalists in a “virtual media room.” The public livestream was a blend of ads, political videos, speeches, discussion
“We don’t know the precise contours of what the Milwaukee convention will be yet, but we will make sure it’s safe, inspiring and Wisconsin-y.” Tom Perez Democratic National Committee Chairman
U.S. Sen Kamala Harris, D-Calif., spoke briefly Friday during the Texas Democratic Party's online state convention. LINDELL
panels and performances by Texas artists such as singer-songwriter Robert Earl Keen and the Tejano band, Little Joe Y La Familia.
Some remarks were prerecorded, and some were live. Some panelists conversed together in person and some conversed remotely. Moderators filled in the gaps and transitions. The speeches were heavily shaped by both the pandemic and the furor over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and the political upheaval it has generated.
“It’s time for us to face the deep open wound of systemic racism in the nation. Nothing about this is going to be easy or comfortable. If we simply allow this wound to scab over once more without treating the underlying injury, we’ll never truly heal,” said Biden.
More enthusiasm, more energy
Organizers said going virtual was a fundraising and organizing boon that resulted in far more participation by party activists than a normal in-person convention drawing 10,000 or so people.
The virtual convention drew more than 100,000 viewers some nights, officials said.
“Eventually, conventions are going to want to move this way,” said Abhi Rahman, spokesman for Texas Democrats.
“We’ve seen more enthusiasm and more energy in this convention than we have in conventions past … The fact that people can participate from their own homes makes it more accessible rather than sitting there and watching speech after speech after speech,” said Rahman.
As an event geared to the party base, organizers said the remote convention was an improvement in some ways. It allowed the state party to attract more speakers, engage more activists, cover more issues and raise more money, said Texas Democratic Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa. It featured an ambitious online training program for party volunteers.
“We were apprehensive about how this was going to work” with respect to energizing the party, said Hinojosa. Instead, he saw “almost no mess-ups” and said it could be a model for the national party if it decides to have a major virtual component in its August convention.
A hybrid gathering in Milwaukee
Beto O’Rourke, the former Texas congressman and presidential candidate, told reporters he favored a virtual national convention for public health reasons, saying he hopes the DNC “follows the lead of Texas.”
But while state conventions may provide guidance for how to conduct much of the business and organizing functions of a convention, huge questions remain about what a mostly virtual national convention may lose as a mass audience event for more casual voters. Will it engage people outside the party base? Will it command the same viewing audience? Will it generate the same level of news coverage and the traditional convention polling bounce?
“The only limit is the instantaneous (crowd) response to speeches,” Hinojosa said of the viewing experience. “It’s not like (delegates) can get up there and cheer for particular speakers and pump them up. All (speakers) have in front of them is a screen. They’re having to show their best without the crowd helping them at a higher level.”
But he and many other Democrats don’t expect the national convention to go 100% virtual, as Texas and many other state parties have done. Many expect a hybrid gathering, where some delegates and speakers come to Milwaukee and others participate remotely.
“You can have more voices, you can have more participation, ... (including) people who are not the type to come to a convention,” said Paul Begala, a Texan and Democratic strategist, speaking in one of the party’s “virtual press rooms” Saturday about the pros and cons of a virtual convention.
But “you miss the camaraderie,” he said.