Despite the boos and jeers by supporters of Senator Bernie Sanders early on at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, the party managed a show of unity at the event >to formally nominate Hillary Clinton as its candidate for the U.S. presidential election . This is a moment of pride for both the Democratic Party and Ms. Clinton. This is the first time a major American party is nominating a woman as a presidential candidate. What is more comforting for Ms. Clinton is that most party stalwarts, including those belonging to the Left spectrum of the Democratic Party such as Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren and Mr. Sanders, have categorically spoken in her favour. Mr. Sanders’s intervention was particularly significant, given that they had fought a bitter battle in the primaries. He went well beyond the “alternative-is-worse” line, an argument Republican leaders made while supporting Donald Trump at their convention last week. True, the Trump factor dominated the Democratic convention. But Mr. Sanders was able to paint a bigger picture and appeal directly to his supporters, mostly the young, saying Ms. Clinton “understands” the concerns of the working people and the need to invest more in education. With this full-throated endorsement, Ms. Clinton has overcome a major hurdle in the presidential race. She is now in a better position to win over the Sanders voters, a large section of whom are still angry with the Democratic establishment and Ms. Clinton’s Wall Street ties.
For now Ms. Clinton appears to have the edge over Mr. Trump. She got the most number of votes in the primaries. She is in a better position to win women and minority votes than Mr. Trump. She has the support of Mr. Sanders and President Barack Obama. Though Mr. Trump has a marginal lead in the latest opinion poll, it could be because of the so-called convention bounce. A clearer trend will be available only after the Democratic convention is concluded. Going ahead, the Trump team can be expected to launch more focussed attacks on the weak points of the Hillary campaign, such as the botched Libya war, the killing of the U.S. ambassador in Libya and the e-mail server controversy. Besides, Mr. Trump is using economic worries and terror attacks at home and abroad to knit a dark narrative, trying to mainstream his extreme ideas such as building border walls and keeping certain communities out. Ms. Clinton represents a more inclusive, democratic and efficient America. If the message of unity coming out of Philadelphia is true and sustainable, Ms. Clinton stands a fair chance to become the first woman president of the U.S., and avert a potentially destabilising Trump White House.
