Biden, Obama and the Clintons Will Speak at the Democratic Convention

Democrats will hear from three presidents at their convention next week in Chicago, where they will gather to recognize Vice President Kamala Harris as their nominee and celebrate an unexpected campaign that has turned the race on its head.

President Biden is expected to address delegates next Monday, the convention’s first night, with former President Barack Obama speaking on Aug. 20, according to three people familiar with the planning who insisted on anonymity to discuss sensitive arrangements. Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the party’s 2016 nominee, will also speak at the convention, two of the people said.

Ms. Harris’s running mate, Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, has been given an Aug. 21 speaking slot. And Ms. Harris herself will ceremonially accept the nomination on Aug. 22, the convention’s grand finale.

A formal speaking schedule has not yet been released. Neither has the identity of the convention’s keynote speaker, a high honor often bestowed on a rising star in the party. Past keynote speakers at Democratic conventions have included Mr. Obama in 2004; Julián Castro, then the mayor of San Antonio, in 2012; and Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts in 2016. At the party’s virtual 2020 convention, a medley of younger Democrats gave a group keynote address via video.

Since taking over from Mr. Biden, Ms. Harris has transformed the contest against former President Donald J. Trump, raising hundreds of millions of dollars, drawing tens of thousands of people to rallies and significantly improving on Mr. Biden’s standing in polls. What just a few weeks ago seemed a certain defeat for Democrats in November now has all the feelings of a close race.

Conventions are usually a