CHICAGO — In a sweeping speech in which she sought to introduce herself to voters and prosecute the case against Donald Trump, Vice President Kamala Harris drew on three pillars historically associated with the Republican Party and attempted to reclaim them: patriotism, family values and law and order.

Those three themes were on display throughout the Democratic National Convention in Chicago this week leading up to Harris’ speech. By embracing and emphasizing values typically touted by the Republican Party, Democrats hoped to recast caricatures of their party and to win over swing voters by persuading them that they share their values.

“With this election, our nation has a precious, fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism, and divisive battles of the past – a chance to chart a new way forward, not as members of any one party or faction, but as Americans,” Harris said Thursday.

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The floor of the convention was packed hours before Harris filled the stage, with press, delegates and guests alike jockeying for spots in the aisles. Around 7:30 p.m., delegates began getting told that if they left their seats, they likely wouldn’t get back in. Michigan Rep. Elissa Slotkin, who had just spoken at the convention, was turned away.

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Delegates wore hard hats and lime green shirts, light-up glasses and hats and enormous amounts of white – a color used to honor the women’s suffrage movement. (Harris, however, wore all Black, which made her stand out against the colorful stage.)

And excitement about being an American was on full display.

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Former Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger told the convention, “I’ve learned something about the Democratic Party and I want to let my fellow Republicans in on the secret: The Democrats are just as patriotic as us. They love this country just as much as we do, and they are as eager to defend American values at home and abroad as we conservatives have ever been.”

“USA” signs filled the United Center throughout the week, a striking contrast to the “Mass Deportation Now” signs that filled the Republican National Convention weeks prior.

“I am here as a mother, as a daughter, as a proud union member. I am here as the granddaughter of immigrants, as a Black woman descended from enslaved people. I am here tonight because I am an American,” actor Kerry Washington said.

Even The Chicks, whose 2003 comments about being ashamed of then-President George W. Bush triggered boycotts, had a moment of redemption singing the national anthem.

Rep. Nanette Barragán of Carson (Los Angeles County) said the convention wasn’t about reclaiming patriotism, but about helping Americans to see that Democrats also have it.

“To be a patriot is an American value. And I think Democrats have always been patriots, it’s just Republicans have tried to steal that platform,” Barragán told the Chronicle.

Republicans “took ownership of words that belong to all Americans. And it applied to a smaller and smaller group of people in their view,” Aimee Allison, founder of She the People, which advocates for Black women in politics, told the Chronicle. “The true meaning of patriotism (is) love of country. Democrats are emphasizing the love.”

When former Georgia Lt. Gov. Jeff Duncan, a Republican, spoke Wednesday night, he framed a vote for Harris not as a vote for Democrats, but for patriotism.

“You don’t have to agree with every policy position of Kamala Harris. I don’t. But you do have to recognize her prosecutor mindset that understands right from wrong, good from evil,” Duncan said. “Let me be clear to my Republican friends at home watching: If you vote for Kamala Harris in 2024, you’re not a Democrat. You’re a patriot.”

Long Beach Rep. Robert Garcia said his mom taught him that “real American patriotism is not about screaming and yelling ‘America first.’”

“Real American patriotism is loving your country so much that you want to help the people in your country. That is American patriotism. And we all know that Kamala Harris understands and knows this,” Garcia told the convention Monday.

Harris ended her speech Thursday by attempting to unite voters and appeal to a collective love of country.

“It is now our turn to do what generations before us have done,” Harris said. “Guided by optimism and faith, to fight for this country we love, to fight for the ideals we cherish and to uphold the awesome responsibility that comes with the greatest privilege on Earth – the privilege and pride of being an American.”

Democrats have also spent recent weeks framing choices in how people have and care for their families as “family values” – a term often used by conservatives to refer to their opposition to abortion, comprehensive sex education, homosexuality and atheism.

In casting New Mexico’s votes for Harris and Walz during the ceremonial roll call, Democratic Party Chair Jessica Velasquez highlighted the state as “where we live our family values, respect women, love our land, our water, our blue skies, our green chili and our sunsets.”

Kate Cox, a Texas woman who was denied an abortion after her fetus was diagnosed with a life-shortening condition, told the convention Tuesday, “There’s nothing pro-family about abortion bans. There’s nothing pro-life about letting women suffer, and even die.”

Throughout the convention, Harris’ history as a prosecutor – and her role in keeping “law and order” – was center stage.

“Together with law enforcement, she prioritized holding criminals accountable and protecting public safety,” Sen. Laphonza Butler told the convention Monday.

“Donald Trump rants about law and order as if he wasn’t a convicted criminal running against a prosecutor; as if we were going to forget that crime was higher on his watch,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Wednesday.

The convention even had a sheriff in uniform speaking Thursday night.

It all teed up the opportunity for Harris to deliver her closing argument. 

“As a prosecutor, when I had a case, I charged it not in the name of the victim. But in the name of ‘The People,’” Harris said. “For a simple reason. In our system of justice, a harm against any one of us is a harm against all of us.”

While the energy in the arena was muted compared to the 15,000-person rallies Harris has recently held, one of the biggest applause lines of the night addressed an issue on many voters’ minds: Gaza.

Wednesday and Thursday, the Democratic National Committee had gotten flack from pro-Palestinian advocates because they hoped a Palestinian American would be allowed to speak to the convention, a wish that wasn’t fulfilled.

The convention, however, erupted when Harris spoke about the pain being caused by the Israel-Hamas war.

“What has happened in Gaza over the past 10 months is devastating. So many innocent lives lost. Desperate, hungry people fleeing for safety, over and over again,” Harris said. “President Biden and I are working to end this war such that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, security, freedom and self-determination.”

Chanting USA and pledging allegiance to the flag has “new meaning under this campaign,” Allison said.

And the crowd harkened back to a familiar line, with a slight twist: “Yes she can.”