By Steve Holland, Trevor Hunnicutt and Doina Chiacu
CHICAGO (Reuters) -President Joe Biden cemented the Democratic Party's elevation of Kamala Harris to lead the fight for the White House against Republican Donald Trump with a convention speech on Monday that praised his vice president as the best hope for preserving American democracy.
Biden took center stage on opening night of the Democratic National Convention, drawing an extended standing ovation from the party faithful and delivering a farewell speech to the party he has served for half a century - even with five months left in office.
Wiping away tears after being introduced by his daughter Ashley, Biden waved to the crowd that held signs saying, "We (heart) Biden." Beaming, he responded, "I love YOU."
"Are you ready to vote for freedom? Are you ready to vote for democracy and for America? Let me ask you, are you ready to elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz?" Biden said.
Taking multiple swipes at Trump, Biden promised to be the "best volunteer" Harris and Minnesota Governor Walz, her vice presidential running mate, had ever seen.
Biden's address in Chicago kicked off a four-day event fueled by enthusiasm for Harris and relief that Biden abandoned his own reelection bid and endorsed her to replace him.
The president's reluctant decision to step aside on July 21 came after heavy pressure from party leaders who worried the 81-year-old incumbent was too old to win or serve four more years.
"I love the job, but I love my country more," Biden said, drawing chants of "We love Joe."
Biden, who was No. 2 to the nation's first Black president, Barack Obama, is urging Democrats to unite behind a candidate who, if triumphant on Nov. 5, would become the first woman, who is also Black and South Asian, to be elected U.S. president.
Harris is riding a historic whirlwind into the convention: her campaign has broken fundraising records, packed arenas with supporters, and turned opinion polls in some battleground states in Democrats' favor.
She joined Biden onstage for a hug after he finished his address on Monday.
Biden had hoped just a month ago to deliver a high-profile speech later this week to accept the Democratic nomination for another four-year term. Instead, he will travel to California for a vacation.
Biden dropped his reelection bid after his disastrous debate performance against Trump on June 27 prompted longtime allies, major donors and other party supporters to demand he step aside.
In his speech, Biden touted his administration's accomplishments - boosting the U.S. economy and strengthening U.S. alliances abroad - and made the case for Americans to elect Harris as his White House successor.
He condemned the racism and white supremacy that continue to plague America, saying they had no place in the nation.
He contrasted Harris the prosecutor with Trump, a convicted felon, and catalogued what he called the former president's foreign policy failures, accusing him of bowing down to Russian President Vladimir Putin and leaving NATO in tatters.
Biden rapped Trump for calling the United States a failing nation. "He’s the loser," Biden said with fervor.
Unlike most speakers earlier in the program, Biden acknowledged the anger of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters that gathered outside the convention hall on Monday, saying he has been working nonstop to achieve a ceasefire.
"Those protesters out in the street, they have a point," he said. "A lot of innocent people are being killed on both sides."
Earlier in the day, thousands of protesters assembled at a nearby park to pressure delegates to drop the party's military support for Israel's Gaza offensive.
The pro-Palestinian protesters were fewer than the tens of thousands that organizers had predicted, but a splinter group left the main march and breached a security perimeter near the convention center, drawing riot police who detained four people.
HARRIS CAMEO
Earlier in the evening, Harris, 59, made a surprise appearance, drawing cheers from the crowd as she vowed to defeat Trump.
"Let us fight for the ideals we hold dear and let us always remember, when we fight we win!" Harris said to the roar of the crowd. She will formally accept the nomination on Thursday.
Democrats also cheered their failed 2016 presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton, whose loss to Trump in 2016 dashed hopes of installing the first woman in the White House.
Clinton, who became the first woman to secure a major U.S. party's presidential nomination, drew a standing ovation as she took the stage on Monday.
"The story of my life and the history of our country is that progress is possible, but not guaranteed," said Clinton, who also lost her bid for the 2008 nomination to Obama.
She commended Biden as restoring decency, dignity and competency to the White House.
"And now, we are writing a new chapter in America's story," Clinton said. "Kamala has the character, experience and vision to lead us forward."
Clinton took several shots at her former nemesis. "Donald Trump fell asleep at his own trial, and when he woke up, he made his own kind of history, the first person to run for president with 34 felony convictions," she said to laughter.