What To Expect From Kamala Harris During Her DNC Finale Speech

Vice President Kamala Harris is set to speak on the last night of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago tonight to accept the Democratic Party’s nomination for the U.S. presidential candidacy.

The speech marks the culmination of four days of programming at the convention, which included speeches from former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, former first ladies Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton, and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, who Harris has chosen as her running mate, as well as a high-energy ceremonial roll call vote.

The exact timing of Harris’ speech is unclear, but the programming is expected to run from 6:30 EST to 11 p.m. EST on CSPAN.

Here’s what to expect from tonight’s speech:

She will become the first Black women and first Asian American person to accept a major party’s nomination for president. The speech will be the most significant opportunity to define herself as something more than President Joe Biden’s Vice President, and she is expected to follow the same theme as previous nights of the DNC: acknowledging Biden’s legacy, but looking toward a new future, according to NBC News.

Harris has spent the past two weeks traveling to Howard University, her alma mater, for debate preparation and speechwriting session, according to NBC News. Additionally, her aides have been helping her navigate race and gender and highlighting the history-making position she is in, while also focusing on explaining why she is qualified to run for president.

In her speech, Harris is expected to reach out to middle class voters by sharing her story of being raised by a mother who worked outside of the home, Harris-Walz campaign official told The Hill. According to The Hill, she is expected to discuss how her background helps her better understand the joys and challenges that middle class voters experience in their day-to-day lives.

She is also expected to discuss how she became a prosecutor in order to protect others, especially those who have experienced sexual abuse and homeowners who were impacted by the foreclosure crisis, according to ABC News.

Harris is expected to compare her vision of the future, the “New Way Forward,” with that of the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025, which Trump has in recent days attempted to distance himself from and instead focused on his own Agenda47, according to Axios.

Harris’ “New Way Forward” is expected to focus on economic opportunities and protections for fundamental freedoms.

A significant portion of Harris’ speech is expected to lay out the case against former president Donald Trump, the Republican Party’s nominee for president.

Following speeches from Hillary Clinton, who reminded voters Trump is a convicted felon, and both Obamas, who framed him as a billionaire who only cares about himself, Harris is expected to make clear which case against Trump she intends to make, according to The New York Times.