Democrats Hope to Increase Obama's Support at Convention

Barack Obama revealed his choices of vice president, Delaware Senator Joseph Biden, in a text message early Saturday morning.

Biden brings a working-class background, attack dog mentality and serious foreign policy experience to the ticket, but has a reputation for making foolish or embarrassing comments. Biden was an unsuccessful candidate in the 2008 and 1988 Democratic presidential primaries.

A big campaign ad

	While once important for nominating the party candidate, political conventions are now largely events used to promote the party.

Once a weighty event where party members arrived without a candidate and then debated and made deals until there was a unified choice, the Democratic convention, as well as the Republican version the following week in Minneapolis, Minn., is primarily a chance to advertise the presidential and vice presidential nominees to the nation.

Many political and media analysts agree that this year's conventions are important because voters have lingering doubts about both candidates.

{"TV types generally acknowledge that, while conventions for some time have been little more than pomp-and-circumstance ceremonies, this time the shows the two parties will put on for the viewing public -- and how many people see them -- could have a profound effect on the outcome of this election," wrote Washington Post TV columnist Lisa de Moraes.

The "convention bounce"

	The convention floor at the Pepsi Center in Denver will feature all the biggest names in the Democratic Party.

This year, the Democratic convention will host 50,000 people, including 15,000 journalists, USA Today reported. For the first time since President John Kennedy's nomination, Obama will leave the convention hall and give his acceptance speech at an open-air sports stadium in front of more than 70,000 people.

Are conventions important?

	Obama won a narrow majority of delegates in the Democratic primary to defeat Senator Hillary Clinton. Clinton plans to give her delegates to Obama.

The last time a Democratic convention came down to an actual vote between two candidates was in 1980, when Jimmy Carter edged out Senator Ted Kennedy for the nomination.

Tom Oriel helps run DemConWatch, a blog that has tracked every aspect of the Denver convention since 2005.  He said the fact that Obama is assured the nomination before the convention, as has been the case for many past nominees at modern era conventions, has raised the debate about whether the Denver convention might be the last of its kind.

"It's a huge question; it might be the last big convention. People have said that over and over … it's been decades since [a nomination] was decided at the convention," Oriel said.

Oriel points out that the convention is popular with the media for other reasons.

"It's a huge story, kind of like a tradition that its widely covered and you also have the entire Democratic party in one at one time -- it's a huge party."

Nearly tied

	John McCain has narrowed Obama's lead in the weeks leading up to the Democratic convention.

McCain has been on the attack, questioning Obama's judgment on Iraq and releasing TV ads that paint Obama, who is almost 30 years younger, as a shallow celebrity not ready to lead.

But Democrats hope the convention will enable them to frame their candidate and message in their own terms before a huge national audience.