Eido Walny spent much of his free time as a volunteer at the 1996 Democratic National Convention wandering the halls of the United Center, chatting with senators and watching Bill Clinton’s prime-time acceptance speech.
“For a bright-eyed 20-year-old, that was incredible,” Walny said. “I still have my box of various credentials from that time. It was amazing.”
Before next week’s Democratic convention, the first Chicago has hosted in 28 years, the Tribune followed up with two of the then-young volunteers from 1996. Now middle-aged, they shared their favorite memories and how their political views have evolved.
Meanwhile, as the ’96 helpers reminisce, about 12,000 volunteers — ranging in age from 16 to 102 years old — will help out at next week’s convention with jobs such as giving attendees directions and driving shuttles. They’re also generally some of the most energized supporters of Kamala Harris and other Democrats. That was on display at a volunteer appreciation rally Thursday at Wrigley Field. Chants of “When we fight, we win” filled the stadium, as hundreds donned blue outfits.
In ’96, Walny, then a student at the University of Chicago and a board member for the Illinois College Democrats, ended up at the DNC through volunteering with U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin’s campaign and helping out with Clinton’s reelection efforts in the Chicago area. He told the Tribune at the time that education funding was a pressing issue for young Democrats.
“I think it’s still important. I mean I have an 18-year-old son now,” Walny said this week. “I know what my parents were paying for me to go to the University of Chicago, and I know what tuition at the University of Chicago costs now, and I know how impossible it was for us to fill out the (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) this year.”
But some things have changed for Walny, a 48-year-old founding attorney of Walny Legal Group who’s also the village president of Bayside, Wisconsin. Walny now identifies as a “fierce Independent” and said he’s undecided on the presidential race.
While he has good memories from the 1996 convention, Walny said he couldn’t see himself working at or attending the DNC this year. In college, Walny remembers talking about Bears or Packers games after political debates with friends. Those political conversations wouldn’t be possible now, he thinks.
“Democrats have moved far to the left. The Republicans have moved far to the right,” Walny said. “I think a lot of that has to do with rather than trying to appease the middle, everybody’s tried to appease the extremes, and it’s resulted in a pretty divided country.”
Walny said he’ll probably have a better idea of whom he’ll vote for after the debates, with the health of the economy at the front of his mind. He said he wants to learn more specifics about Harris’ positions through interviews.
“How do you vote for a candidate in good faith, not knowing what they stand for, hiding from the issues. It worries me quite a lot,” he said. “She might be a great candidate, but I don’t know.”
But current volunteers are more optimistic about Harris, saying they’re excited to help get her elected. Officials with the Chicago 2024 DNC Host Committee said people from every state and every ZIP code in Chicago make up the 12,000 volunteers. They also said they received around 30,000 volunteer applications for the convention.
“People are coming from all over the nation and all over the world not just to nominate Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, but also to see our beautiful city and experience the hospitality that all of you are bringing to them,” Gov. JB Pritzker said Thursday at the rally.
As Nadine Drilling, 61, of Naperville, stood in line outside Wrigley Field, she said she’ll contribute in any way so Donald Trump isn’t reelected. During the convention, she’ll greet guests at hotels and airports.
“He (Trump) made this country very divisive,” she said, adding that maintaining Social Security and Medicare are important issues for her in the election. “He blamed Democrats for everything, and I feel like it’s made me bitter against other people, and I don’t want to be that way.”
Brenda Gomero, 28, of Bucktown, said she immediately signed up to volunteer after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race. While she planned to vote for Biden, she said she wasn’t passionate about his candidacy. Now, she’s much more excited, she said.
For Gomero, who’s assigned to the sustainability unit, protecting reproductive rights is the number one issue, an area polls show Harris has an advantage over Trump. While she isn’t worried about abortion becoming illegal in Illinois, she said it’s “heartbreaking” for others across the country, especially those who may not have the money to travel long distances for the procedure.
“I think having someone like Trump in the White House, it’s a danger to women,” she said. “I come from an immigrant background, so just someone that’s so anti-immigrant like he is, it’s terrible.”
In 1996, when Beth Mohsinger was a 21-year-old student from Syracuse University volunteering at the DNC, she remembers its “fun” and “celebratory” nature, especially the night she got to go inside the convention hall. She told the Tribune at the time that abortion rights was the most important issue for young Democrats.
Mohsinger, who’s now a fundraiser for groups supporting reproductive health and rights, laughed when reached by phone this week, saying while she doesn’t remember talking about the issue 30 years ago, she isn’t surprised. After the Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, she said protecting abortion rights is even more urgent.
“She (Harris) is the most outspoken presidential candidate we’ve ever had on the abortion issue, and with her and Tim Walz, they’re the most pro-reproductive health ticket we’ve ever seen in history,” Mohsinger, 49, said. “It’s exciting that it’s a motivating issue. I mean, it’s also depressing and sad that we are at this point that … we had to have our rights taken away from us.”
Mohsinger said she’s also paying attention to the economy this election and other social issues, such as racial justice and LGBTQ+ rights. For her, the Democratic Party’s positions best align with her values. She’s scheduled to be at next week’s convention as well, she added.
“I mean the party’s not perfect, no party is perfect,” she said. “But certainly it’s the party I most identify with.”
