Welcome. We're going to help you make it to Election Day – smarter than the average politician (or your neighbor), better prepared than the average spin doctor on TV, and ready to decide the results. We'll help you cut through the noise with the stories you really should read now, the social media posts you don’t want to miss, some interactive election tools, a daily wrap-up video, and a bit of levity. (Hey, it’s laugh or cry sometimes this year.)

Our writers, videographers and photojournalists will give you a front-row seat and get answers to your questions as if you were in the news conference yourself. We’ll tell stories in video and fast text to fit your busy day.

The polls open nationally in 112 days. Let’s get started.

Monday, July 18

▪  Over the weekend, Donald Trump formally announced his running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, in a vice presidential announcement that offers a glimpse of what it might be like to run on a ticket with the presumptive presidential nominee. On a stage bearing only one name –Trump’s – Trump spoke for 28 minutes about himself, introduced Pence and then left the man on the stage – alone.

The two men, whose political ideologies are not a perfect match, appeared Sunday on “60 Minutes,” their first joint interview. There was awkwardness.

From the convention

▪  The four-day Republican National Convention opens today in Cleveland. Will the notion of “President Donald Trump” seem plausible in just a few days’ time? Or will the party’s prominent no-shows steal the headlines? Will protests or the NeverTrump forces make a mess of the convention? David Lightman imagines 10 ways Trump’s convention could revive the GOP – or kill it.

From the other party

▪  On the Democratic side, we’ll likely learn this week who will join presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton on the Democratic ticket. Elizabeth Warren is the best-known – and most controversial – VP prospect, our poll shows. And here’s what the oddsmakers say about who it’s going to be. (Tim Kaine is the odds-on favorite, followed closely by the controversial Warren.) | More convention coverage

And a couple of other good reads

▪  Politico writes about the team that writes Hillary Clinton's speeches – including Bill Clinton.

▪  And Buzzfeed, on what really drives Donald Trump.

From social media

▪  Have a question about the candidates, the campaign, the process, the election itself? Ask us here.

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