Explainer: How the Coronavirus Changed US Political Conventions, Perhaps Forever

The U.S. political convention, a presidential campaign ritual dating to the 1830s, is being reinvented on the fly after being short-circuited by the coronavirus pandemic – much like the campaign itself.

Here is a look at how the Democratic and Republican conventions will be different this year – and maybe for campaigns to come.

SEIZING THE SPOTLIGHT

There will be no roaring crowds of delegates in a cavernous hall, no balloon drops or wall-to-wall parties. Both Democrats and Republicans will offer mostly virtual programs featuring speeches and events from around the country.

Nevertheless, the Aug. 17-20 Democratic National Convention could give presumptive nominee 👤Joe Biden his first big, attentive audience in months, said Julian Zelizer, a political historian at Princeton University.

Though Biden leads Republican President 👤Donald Trump in opinion polls leading up to the Nov. 3 election, the Democratic former vice president has been largely booted off the campaign trail by the pandemic. Trump, meanwhile, has continued to command heavy media attention with his White House briefings and campaign events.

That puts increased significance on Biden’s televised acceptance speech, the traditional starter’s gun for the final sprint to the election.

“That could be more valuable this year than in other years, particularly for Democrats, because most people have not been paying as much attention to the nominee lately and he hasn’t been campaigning,” Zelizer said.

For Trump, his speech could be a chance to move beyond the debate about his handling of the coronavirus and allow him to present his broad vision for a second term, said Ford O’Connell, a former Florida Republican congressional candidate who consults with the Trump campaign.