Vice President Kamala Harris arrives in Chicago for DNC
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband, First Gentleman Doug Emhoff, landed at O'Hare International Sunday night on the eve of the Democratic National Convention.
Air Force Two landed at O'Hare around 7:30 p.m. Harris and her husband were greeted by members of the Illinois Democratic delegation.
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and Reps. Mike Quigley, Jan Schakowsky, Danny Davis, Bill Foster, Jonathan Jackson, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Brad Schneider, Sean Casten, Lauren Underwood, and Delia Ramirez were all spotted in the crowd.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, and Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, and Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias also turned out.
From the airport, Harris' motorcade made its way downtown to the vice president's hotel. The motorcade was spotted as it traveled west on Chicago Avenue and crossed Michigan Avenue into a heavily fenced-off and secured area.
There are a couple of high-end hotels within the perimeter.
Traffic on Michigan Avenue came to a complete stop for about 40 minutes Sunday night in preparation for the vice president. Chicago Police blocked intersections in both directions.
Pedestrians were also unable to cross the Mag Mile at Chicago Avenue.
"I just stopped for a walk with my wife, and this is not usually how it is when we take a walk," said Les Schaffer. "I think they're trying to keep everything secure out of respect for the politicians that are coming, and just for the safety of everybody involved."
CBS News Chicago is told the vice president will receive private briefings Monday and conduct internal meetings during the day.
She will then be on hand at the United Center to support President Biden, who will deliver the keynote speech for the DNC at the United Center Monday night.