Clinton also acknowledged Biden’s resignation, saying: “Now we are writing a new chapter in American history.”

Clinton, 76, underscored the party’s cross-generational reach. She followed 34-year-old New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who endorsed Harris and made the first mention of the war in Gaza at the convention, addressing an issue that has divided the party’s base since the October 7 Hamas attack and Israel’s subsequent offensive.

Outside the arena, thousands of protesters flocked to Chicago to denounce the Biden-Harris administration’s support of Israel’s war effort.

Harris is “working tirelessly to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and bring the hostages home,” Ocasio-Cortez said to cheers from the crowd.

Meanwhile, Democrats tried to shift the focus to Trump, mocking his criminal convictions and claiming he was fighting only for himself and not “for the people” – the official theme of the evening.

Michigan State Senator Mallory McMorrow lifted an oversized copy of “Project 2025” – a blueprint for a second Trump term created by the conservative think tank Heritage Foundation – onto the lectern and quoted from parts of it.