The Republican National Convention concluded Thursday and the fall campaign season officially kicks off with President Donald Trump having formally accepted the GOP nomination for a second term as president in a speech that he delivered from the White House South Lawn.
A fireworks display lit up the sky above the Washington Monument at the conclusion of his remarks.
Highlights from the final night of the RNC:
12:48 a.m. Trump squares off with his own America as GOP convention concludes: ANALYSIS
On the final night of the Republican National Convention, as protesters massed outside the White House that was transformed into a grand political backdrop, President Donald Trump offered a sentiment the nation actually can unite behind.
“At no time before have voters faced a clearer choice between two parties, two visions, two philosophies or two agendas,” the president said Thursday, in accepting the Republican nomination for a second time with a meandering and searing speech.
It would have been a jarring scene in any moment — bright lights and big “TRUMP-PENCE” signs on the South Lawn of the White House, as a giant political rally was held at the most famous residence in the United States.
The messaging, too, would be discordant in any time — descriptions of American rot and violence joined by urgent pleas to reelect the president.
But this is not just any moment. It’s a tense, angry, conflicted time, amid the biggest pandemic and most sudden economic collapse in a century, and unfolding reckonings around race and policing.
Read more from ABC News Political Director Rick Klein’s analysis:
12:44 a.m. 3 key takeaways from night 4 of the Republican National Convention
The Republican National Convention came to a close Thursday, but not before remarks from some of the nation’s most prominent conservatives, including the party’s congressional leaders, President Donald Trump’s daughter — and White House adviser — and the chief executive himself.
The night brought a close to two weeks of unprecedented political conventions but also kick started the presidential campaign’s homestretch, reaffirming several of the themes likely to play a major role in the successes and failures of those on the ballot in November.
Here are the key takeaways from night four of the RNC:
12:37 a.m. Unprecedented wave of GOP defections as Trump re-nominated: ANALYSIS
What started as a trickle of “Never Trumpers” has turned into a historic wave of defections from high-profile Republicans.
By the close of the 2020 Republican National Convention, nearly 500 current and former GOP officials have gone public opposing a second term for the president of their own party.
“Absolutely unprecedented; nothing remotely like it,” said presidential historian Mark Updegrove.
The divide over President Donald Trump and Trumpism has raised existential questions for Republicans both about party identity and loyalty.
“It’s become the party of Donald Trump and any whim he has,” Updegrove said. “It’s about personality and not political party or platform.”
While nine in 10 Republican voters approve of Trump as president, opposition to his leadership inside the party establishment has mushroomed.
Read more:
12:28 a.m. The striking contrast between the Democratic and Republican conventions
After testing every staff member, reporter and individual near the former vice president for two days in a row and asking members of the crowd to stay in or near their socially distanced cars Joe Biden and his wife still wore masks as they watched fireworks together, away from the cheering audience after his acceptance speech at the Democratic…
Read More: RNC 2020 Day 4: Trump accepts nomination from White House