--- title: Republican Convention in Cleveland: What To Expect This Week description: Protests, rallies, speeches and themed evenings: Here's what to expect each day from this year's convention. canonical: https://time.com/4409798/republican-convention-schedule-cleveland/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-07-17T22:22:53.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:45:56.653Z article:section: Politics og:title: What to Expect This Week at the Republican Convention og:description: A quick guide to the week in prime time og:url: https://time.com/4409798/republican-convention-schedule-cleveland/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbbdd4ec828554148/69889c37cd1bba7779701809/gettyimages-576629236.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5760 og:image:height: 3240 og:image:alt: Cleveland Prepares For Upcoming Republican National Convention og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: What to Expect This Week at the Republican Convention twitter:description: A quick guide to the week in prime time twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbbdd4ec828554148/69889c37cd1bba7779701809/gettyimages-576629236.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # What to Expect This Week at the Republican Convention > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Jul 17, 2016 10:22 PM UTC  vent workers compare photos on the floor of the Quicken Loans Arena ahead of the Republican National Convention on July 16, 2016 in Cleveland, Ohio. vent workers compare photos on the floor of the Quicken Loans Arena ahead of the Republican National Convention on July 16, 2016 in Cleveland, Ohio. John Moore—Getty Images  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Jul 17, 2016 10:22 PM UTC This week’s Republican convention in Cleveland will culminate on Thursday with thousands of balloons dropping on Donald Trump as he accepts the nomination for President. But until then, there will be [protests](http://time.com/4393719/republican-national-convention-protests/?iid=sr-link1), rallies, speeches and themed evenings. Here’s a quick guide to what to expect each day from this year’s convention. **Monday** Monday’s official theme is “Make America Safe Again,” which will focus on Benghazi and the border. The official list of RNC speakers for the day includes Melania Trump, Willie Robertson of Duck Dynasty, Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas), Lieutenant General Michael Flynn, and Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Senator Jeff Sessions (R-Alabama), and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. There will also be protests and rallies during the convention’s first day: in the early afternoon, people will march in an anti-Trump demonstration around Cleveland Public Square. But later in the day, 5,000 Trump supporters are expected along the parade route for a pro-Trump event. **Tuesday** Tuesday’s speakers will highlight the economy and job creation, in the day themed “Make America Work Again.” This day features two of Trump’s children, Tiffany and Donald Jr. Trump’s former primary rival Ben Carson will also speak, as well as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker Paul Ryan, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. Two anti-Trump marches are expected on Tuesday. **Wednesday** Wednesday is titled “Make America First Again” and will focus on prosperity and American leadership. The RNC speaker lineup includes Trump’s son Eric, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, and Trump’s [new running mate, Indiana Governor Mike Pence](http://time.com/4406477/donald-trump-mike-pence-running-mate-vice-president/?xid=tcoshare). Three of Trump’s former primary rivals will speak Wednesday: Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, Florida Senator Marco Rubio and Texas Senator Ted Cruz. **Thursday** Thursday, nomination day, is called “Make America One Again” and will center on unifying the country. RNC Chairman Reince Priebus will speak, along with evangelical leader Jerry Falwell Jr., and venture capitalist Peter Thiel. Trump’s daughter Ivanka will introduce him, and then Trump will speak. 125,000 balloons will drop on Trump when he accepts the nomination. There will be a Stand Together Against Trump march on Thursday, with 5,000 people expected to attend. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4409798/republican-convention-schedule-cleveland/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4409798/republican-convention-schedule-cleveland/"},"headline":"What to Expect This Week at the Republican Convention","datePublished":"2016-07-17T22:22:53.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-19T07:45:56.653Z","description":"A quick guide to the week in prime time","url":"https://time.com/4409798/republican-convention-schedule-cleveland/","keywords":["Republican National Convention","2016 Election","Ohio","republican convention"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbbdd4ec828554148/69889c37cd1bba7779701809/gettyimages-576629236.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tessa Berenson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbbdd4ec828554148/69889c37cd1bba7779701809/gettyimages-576629236.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Cleveland Prepares For Upcoming Republican National Convention","caption":"Cleveland Prepares For Upcoming Republican National Convention","creditText":"John Moore—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/republican-national-convention/","name":"Republican National Convention"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4409798/republican-convention-schedule-cleveland/","name":"What to Expect This Week at the Republican Convention"}}]}] ```