The 2024 DNC has come to a close. But these are the viral moments we'll remember.
“Ben Affleck, hang in there!”
Chicago’s biggest party of the week came to a close on Thursday night as Vice President Kamala Harris accepted the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination.
With more than 100 speakers and some surprise guests — excluding Beyoncé — the four-day convention at the United Center included everything from happy tears to some serious jabs at the Republican Party and their nominee.
Here are 14 breakout moments from the DNC that stood out to us:
1. Gus Walz beaming with emotion and pride for his dad
Tim Walz's son, Gus, showed the world on Wednesday night just how proud he is of his dad.
Walz spoke onstage to accept the vice presidential nomination and was talking about his family's struggle with infertility when he told Gus, 17; his daughter, Hope, 23; and wife, Gwen: "You are my entire world, and I love you."
Gus immediately pointed toward his dad onstage, choking up. He stood up, clapped and appeared to mouth the words: "That's my dad."
You know you’ve done well as a parent when your kids are as proud of you as Gus and Hope are of Tim Walz. “That’s my dad.” No three words better describe our next Vice President. pic.twitter.com/zNOyBjo5Fy
— Amy Klobuchar (@amyklobuchar) August 22, 2024
2. Lil Jon gives surprise performance during Georgia’s roll call
Music played an integral role in keeping the energy up during roll call on Tuesday evening. DJ Cassidy, who mixed and organized the music, played a song that had meaning for each state as they were announced.
Grammy award-winning artist and Atlanta native Lil Jon turned up the energy for Georgia's roll call, appearing for a surprise performance of his 2013 hit "Turn Down for What" from the United Center’s stadium stairs.
3. Obama takes a dig at Trump with his ‘weird obsession with crowd sizes’
Former President Barack Obama didn’t mince words when talking about his successor, former President Donald Trump, on Tuesday night. “Here is a 78-year-old billionaire who has not stopped whining about his problems since he rode down his golden escalator nine years ago,” Obama told the crowd.
“There's the childish nicknames, the crazy conspiracy theories, this weird obsession with crowd sizes,” he said, taking a pause to adjust his hands showing different sizes jokingly. The moment quickly went viral on social media.
Obama: Here is a 78-year-old billionaire who has not stopped whining about his problems since he rode down his golden escalator nine years ago. There's the childish nicknames, the crazy conspiracy theories, this weird obsession with crowd sizes pic.twitter.com/WGwNOFinHK
— Acyn (@Acyn) August 21, 2024
4. Cole Emhoff’s video about their blended family and meeting ‘Momala’
A video created in part by Cole Emhoff and his mother, Kerstin Emhoff — the son and ex-wife of second gentleman Doug Emhoff — was unveiled Tuesday. It showed the personal impact Vice President Kamala Harris has had on the Emhoff family since she married his dad in 2014.
Cole talked about when his dad and mom split up when he was in middle school, but remained friends. He touched on how years later his dad and Kamala met on a blind date, and “Kamala became Momala” when the two wed.
"Our blended family wasn’t used to politics or the spotlight, but when Kamala became senator, we were all excited to step up. Especially my dad," Cole said in the video.
This is my Dad, Doug. A film by Cole Emhoff, produced by me, and @Venture_land ?? pic.twitter.com/yo5HVEdso9
— Kerstin Emhoff (@keprettybird) August 21, 2024
5. Michelle Obama on Trump seeking a ‘Black job’
The DNC crowd burst into raucous applause Tuesday night after former first lady Michelle Obama took a big jab at Trump over his recent claim that immigrants are taking “Black jobs.”
“By the way — who's going to tell [Trump] that the job he's currently seeking might be one of those Black jobs?” she quipped.
6. Mindy Kaling telling Ben Affleck to ‘hang in there’
The Office writer and actress Mindy Kaling brought her comedic wit to the DNC as Wednesday night’s celebrity host. The day before, Jennifer Lopez filed for divorce from Ben Affleck — and Kaling made sure to mention Affleck, a fellow Massachusetts native.
“I love you, Massachusetts!” Kaling yelled as the crowd cheered. “Everyone is always hating on us. But they just don’t get it. Go Sox! Go Jayson Tatum! Ben Affleck, hang in there!”
“Ben Affleck, hang in there!”
— Mindy Kaling gives her fellow Massachusetts-native some words of encouragement while she shouts out the state’s delegation pic.twitter.com/JukE3OIv2b— The Recount (@therecount) August 22, 2024
7. President Biden tearing up after being introduced by his daughter
President Biden spoke at the convention Monday night, a little less than a month after he dropped out of the presidential race and endorsed Harris.
When he took the stage, Biden received an extended standing ovation as the crowd chanted "We love Joe!" and "Thank you, Joe!" for over three minutes.
Biden was introduced by his daughter Ashley Biden.
"I'll tell you what," Biden said, appearing to fight back tears. "To my dearest daughter Ashley, God love you, you're incredible."
8. Gwen Walz’s reaction to Barack Obama talking about Tim Walz’s flannels
During his speech, former President Obama referenced Walz’s woodsy sartorial choices. “You can tell those flannel shirts he wears don’t come from some political consultant — they come from his closet,” Obama said. “And they have been through some stuff.”
Walz’s wife Gwen, who was in the audience, nodded and applauded in agreement. “So true, so true,” she said.
Gwen Walz’s reaction to Obama’s mention of Tim Walz’s flannel shirts is everything. pic.twitter.com/w3r01ix1G9
— Chris Strider (@stridinstrider) August 21, 2024
9. Michigan AG tells GOP: ‘You can pry this wedding band from my cold, dead, gay hand’
In her speech on Wednesday night at the convention, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel delivered a pointed message to Republicans and Supreme Court justices who might be thinking about reversing protections for same-sex marriages like hers.
"You can pry this wedding band from my cold, dead, gay hand," Nessel said.
"And I'm retaining a lot of water," she added, "so good luck."
10. Scandal stars Kerry Washington and Tony Goldwyn reunite onstage
Actress Kerry Washington spoke on the DNC's final night. And she was joined by Scandal co-star Tony Goldwyn, who spoke earlier at the convention. Goldwyn came onstage to give Washington her cellphone so she could take a selfie video with the United Center crowd.
"Are you ready for Kamala Harris to win?" Washington asked.
"Yes!" the crowd roared.
The Original ?? #WhenWeFightWeWin #DNC2024 pic.twitter.com/3UNTUHgAZj
— kerry washington (@kerrywashington) August 23, 2024
11. Oprah takes a swipe at Vance’s ‘childless cat ladies’ — and the DNC’s camera cut to a random woman in the crowd
During her surprise appearance at the DNC, Oprah Winfrey made a reference to GOP vice presidential nominee JD Vance’s characterization of Democratic women as “childless cat ladies.”
“When a house is on fire, we don’t ask whose house it is,” Winfrey said. “And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, well, we try to get that cat out too.”
The camera then cut to a random woman in the crowd: Teresa Woorman, a 32-year-old delegate from Maryland who in fact does not have children and lives in Bethesda, Md., with her husband and their pets — including two cats. She had no idea she was on camera, and the awkward sequence went viral.
But Woorman later told the Washington Post that she didn’t mind. “I was already really excited about this whole week,” she said. “This has made it even more fun. It added a little bit of quirkiness.”
MSNBC cutting to this poor random woman after Oprah mentioned a “childless cat lady” ?? pic.twitter.com/8yN5qh9fbV
— marissa (@iamnzane) August 22, 2024
12. Doug Emhoff introduces himself to the world
Second gentleman Emhoff spoke on the convention’s second night and recalled the first time he left Harris a voicemail.
Emhoff said that the second he left it, he wanted to “grab the words out of the air and put them back in my mouth.” He then recreated the message for the United Center crowd: “Hey, it’s Doug. I’m on my way to an early meeting — again, it’s Doug!”
“She makes me listen to it on every anniversary,” Emhoff added with laughter.
If Harris wins in November, she would be the first woman president and Emhoff would be first first gentleman. He would also be the first Jewish spouse of an American president.
13. The Beyoncé performance that wasn’t
There was rampant speculation online this week that Beyoncé — whose song, “Freedom,” is featured prominently at Harris rallies — would make a surprise appearance at the convention. It reached a fever pitch on Thursday night when TMZ reported that she would perform in primetime.
But, much to the dismay of the Beyhive, it never materialized. TMZ even issued a rare apology.
To quote the great Beyonce: We gotta lay our cards down, down, down ... we got this one wrong.
— TMZ (@TMZ) August 23, 2024
14. Harris’s grandnieces teach the audience how to pronounce Kamala’s first name
Washington also led the audience in a memorable segment devoted to how to pronounce Kamala Harris's first name.
"It's come to my attention that there are some folks who struggle, or pretend to struggle, with the proper pronunciation of our future president's name," Washington said. "So, hear me out, confusion is understandable. Disrespect is not."
Washington then brought out Harris's grandnieces, Amara and Leela, who provided pronunciation guidance.
"First you say Kama, like a comma in a sentence," Amara said.
"Then you say la, like la, la, la, la, la," Leela added.
"Put it together," Washington prompted, "and it's Kamala," the group said in unison.
WATCH: Amara and Leila, two of Vice President Kamala Harris' nieces, took the stage at the DNC for a lesson on how to pronounce their aunt's name.
"First you say comma, like comma in a sentence," Amara said.
"Then you say, 'La,' like lalalala," Leila finished. pic.twitter.com/YuGZdaJWpZ— PBS News (@NewsHour) August 23, 2024
(Thumbnail photo credit: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)