Anthony Zurcher
Reporting from the convention

Image source, Reuters

There were dozens of speakers here at the Republican convention on Monday – politicians, conservative activists and ordinary citizens. But the star of the evening never approached the stage or stood before a microphone.

When Donald Trump walked into the arena during the evening’s proceedings, the building shook with cheers, applause and chants of support.

It was the moment the assembled convention crowd was waiting for – a chance to give the leader of their party a hero’s welcome just two days after his brush with an assassin’s bullet.

The evidence of that attack was immediately visible, as the former president’s right ear was heavily – but neatly – bandaged. For the next hour, he sat in the VIP section next to his newly chosen running mate, JD Vance, and surrounded by members of his immediate family.

Every time the jumbo video screens showed the former president, the crowd reignited with applause.

It will be three days until Trump formally accepts the nomination with an address to the delegates – and the nation. In the meantime, more Republicans will take the stage, including former rivals Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis. Vance will deliver his own nomination acceptance speech on Wednesday.

As this evening made clear, however, everyone else is just warm-up acts. Trump is the main event.

We're finishing our live coverage for the day. You can read a full recap of what happened here.

It's been another eventful day in US politics. Here's a quick refresher on some of the major points we've covered.

• Trump turned up at the first day of the Republican National Convention. It was his first public appearance since an assassination attempt on his life two days ago
• He arrived with a bandage over his wounded right ear to a rapturous applause from the crowd, hours after he was formally chosen to lead the party into November's election
• Earlier on Monday, Trump announced that Ohio Senator JD Vance was his pick as running mate

• Elsewhere, the judge overseeing Trump's classified documents case threw out the charges after deciding the special counsel leading the prosecution was illegally selected
• And US President Joe Biden defended his rhetoric against Trump in a new interview

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from the convention

Image source, Reuters

Trump's surprise appearance had its desired impact on the crowd at the Republican National Convention, rallying them while forging an emotional tie with his base.

Erin Lucas 35, said that seeing Trump come out onto the convention floor made her feel "so proud to be an American, to be a Republican".

“He had the whole crowd captivated, watching him walk out,” she told me.

JD Vance's 2016 memoir Hillbilly Elegy has hit number one on Amazon's best sellers list after Trump unveiled him as his running mate.

And it's not just in the number one spot, the more expensive hardcover edition of the book is currently number two on the best sellers list.

According to the Associated Press, Vance has sold 1.6m copies since it was released in 2016.

The book was also adapted into a movie in 2020, directed by Ron Howard.

A pick for economic populismpublished at 04:56 British Summer Time 16 July

04:56 BST 16 July

Natalie Sherman
New York business reporter

The pick of JD Vance for running mate cements the Republican Party’s turn toward economic populism under Donald Trump.

The 39-year-old first gained national recognition as the author of Hillbilly Elegy, his memoir of growing up poor in a region hollowed out by globalisation.

During his 2022 senate campaign, the Yale Law School grad made his blue-collar background a key part of his appeal to voters and he has continued to focus on such issues since his election - and these views have led to some unlikely collaborations.

Last year, for example, he co-sponsored a bill with arch-progressive senator Elizabeth Warren that would claw back pay for executives at failed banks. She told Politico last year, external that he had been “terrific” to work with.

His elevation underscores the dramatic ways Trump has changed the Republican Party, when it comes to the economic policies, the nominal focus at the convention today.

The GOP platform still includes plenty of traditional priorities, like less regulation and lower taxes. But it also champions ideas that were once anathema for Republicans, like a 10% tariffs that Trump has proposed for all imports.

Image source, Jason Miller/X

Just hours after Trump picked JD Vance as his running mate, a campaign plane prominently featuring both their names has been unveiled

Trump's senior advisor Jason Miller shared a photo of the plane on X. , external

It joins Trump's other private plane, nicknamed "Trump Force One".

Tom Bateman
Travelling with Biden

As Donald Trump was met with adulation in Milwaukee, President Biden has flown to Las Vegas - both men signalling the election campaign is back on after only the briefest of pauses.

I’m in the travelling press pool with the president on Air Force 1.

Before boarding at Andrews Air Force Base, Biden headed over to us on the tarmac, breaking into a jog as he got close, and spent a minute answering questions shouted over the roar of the plane.

Asked whether he had confidence in his Secret Service detail amid swirling questions about failures to protect Trump, he replied assertively: “Yes I do”.

On Trump’s pick of JD Vance as his running mate, Biden described the Republican politician as “a clone of Trump on the issues”.

We’re now in Vegas, where a crowd of spectators behind barricades watched the motorcade pull into the city; before two days of official meetings and campaign events.

As with the NBC interview he recorded before flying and being aired tonight, team Biden is signalling a fully throated return to its campaign themes - including its portrayal of Donald Trump as threat to democracy.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from the convention

Watching Trump walk into the convention floor was an intense moment for Oregon delegate Jessica Davidson.

“I felt very emotional seeing a bandage… because somebody tried to assassinate him,” she told me.

Jessica was streaming Trump’s arrival for her family at home.

She believed the shooting would “make him stronger as a candidate”.

Brandon Livesay
Reporting from the convention

The first day of the Republican National Convention has wrapped up.

It ends with the crowd chanting "We love Trump" repeatedly.

The band on stage is playing Journey's hit Don't Stop Believin'.

As Trump makes his way down the stairs he stops to raise his fist into the air, that same pose he did after the attempt on his life.

We didn't hear from Trump tonight, that will happen later this week.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from the convention

In a sign of how important Sean O’Brien’s speech was to the Republicans, Trump stood for his entire speech.

As a result of Trump's sign of respect - Tucker Carlson, Byron Donalds, JD Vance and Mike Johnson all stood, too.

Make no mistake, getting the general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters is something of a coup for the Republicans.

Unions are more associated with the Democratic party and many Republican lawmakers and states have been outright hostile to labour organising.

Image source, RNC

Nearly all the major labour unions have endorsed Biden, but one influential group has withheld support for the Democrat.

Instead, the president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Sean O'Brien, appeared on stage at the RNC on Monday night, making clear the labour union is "not beholden to any party".

He praised Trump, saying "no other [Republican] nominee would have invited the Teamsters into their arena".

“You can have whatever opinion you want, but one thing is clear... Trump is a candidate who is not afraid of hearing from new, loud and often critical voices.

"I think we all can agree whether people like him or they don’t like him, in light of what happened to him on Saturday, he has proven to be one tough SOB.”

Image source, Getty Images

Model and rapper Amber Rose just spoke.

The former Trump critic discussed how she joined the Make America Great Again movement, or as she put it: "I put the red hat on."

"The truth is that the media has lied to us about Donald Trump," she said. "I know this because, for a long time, I believed those lies. So I'm here to set the record straight."

She said that when she met Trump, he "was kind and generous and funny as hell".

Rose added: "Trump supporters don’t care if you’re black, white, gay or straight - it’s all love."

Gareth Evans
Reporting from the convention

We’re sitting to the right of the VIP box, where Donald Trump is.

Given the angle, the large bandage on the former president’s right ear is clearly visible. It’s a striking image.

He’s flanked by his running mate JD Vance on his left and Republican congressman Byron Donalds on his right.

Others in the box include family members, such as his sons Eric and Donald Jr.

The former president is smiling and applauding throughout the speeches. He's occasionally turning to Vance and Donalds to comment on what we're hearing.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from the convention

Image source, Reuters

As Trump walked on to the floor and climbed the stairs to the VIP section, the first hand he shook as he got to the box was Tucker Carlson’s - a sign of the right-wing media figure’s importance in Trump’s orbit.

The bandage on Trump’s ear was impossible to miss as he took his place next to his running mate, JD Vance.

The Republican supporters on the floor were ecstatic.

They began chanting “U-S-A, U-S-A” and then “fight! fight! fight!” as they pumped their fists in the air, a gesture that many here have adopted after Trump’s own symbol of defiance as he was spirited off the stage after being shot in Pennsylvania.

Christal Hayes
US reporter

Meanwhile, in a primetime interview President Biden tells NBC's Lester Holt he has not changed his mind about remaining in the presidential race.

He was also asked whether he had failed to lower the temperature in his own campaign rhetoric about Trump.

The biggest takeaways:

• Biden talks about his call with Trump after the assassination attempt, saying he told the former president he was "concerned" and Trump thanked Biden for calling
• Biden calls it a "mistake" to have said it's "time to put Trump in the bullseye" during a donor call days before Trump was nearly killed in Saturday's shooting
• When asked whether he heightened the temperature in rhetoric, Biden points the finger at Trump, citing his past remarks and conduct, including his claims he won the 2020 election
• Biden says while he personally does "feel safe" with his Secret Service protection, it's important that a full investigation examines whether they should "have anticipated what happened"
• Biden says he's "not surprised" about a judge throwing out the classified documents case against Trump. He notes the Supreme Court ruling that he says made this possible
• When asked whether he's watched his performance at last month's debate, Biden says he's seen clips but laughs and notes he doesn't need to watch the full event to understand it was a poor performance. "I was there," he says with a laugh.
• Biden says he has no plans to leave the presidential race. He notes the voters who backed him and says "I listen to them". When asked who else he consults with on the campaign and his future, he says: "Me."
• Biden says he is old, but only three years older than Trump. "I understand why people say, 'God, he’s 81 years old. Whoa. What’s he gonna be when he’s 83 years old, 84 years?' It’s a legitimate question to ask."

Brandon Livesay
Reporting from the convention

Donald Trump has just walked into the Republican convention to rapturous cheers.

This is the first time he has appeared at a major public event since the assassination attempt on his life at a political rally on Saturday.

A bandage is clearly visible on his right ear.

He is giving his trademark fist pump.

The crowd is chanting USA, USA.

Hours after he was formally picked as the Republican party's nominee, and only two days after a gunman attempted to kill him, Donald Trump has appeared at the convention.

He has a bandage over the ear that was hit by the would-be assassin's bullet.

Brandon Livesay
Reporting from the convention

It looks like Donald Trump is moments away from appearing.

His children have arrived in the VIP box here at the convention, along with several key allies.

We could see Trump very soon.