Rui @ White House 2004

Chelsea and her father

CHELSEA CLINTON gave her first political speech as the Democrats unleashed a line-up of presidential and vice-presidential daughters in Florida. Flanked by President Kennedy’s daughter Caroline, Al Gore’s daughter Karenna, and Vanessa Kerry and Cate Edwards, daughters of the Democratic candidate and his running mate, Ms Clinton said: “I have a couple of experts in the family, and I hope I do them proud.”

Ms Clinton, 24, confessed to being “a little nervous” before appearing at a rally near Tampa — one of several they held in a concerted last-minute effort by the Kerry campaign to appeal to younger voters. “To be honest, I couldn’t imagine being anywhere else today. I couldn’t imagine not being in Florida because the stakes are too high and the choice is too clear,” she told the rally.

Caroline Kennedy compared the election to the knife-edge 1960 contest in which her father narrowly defeated Richard Nixon. The crowd chanted “J. F. K.” — the initials of both her father and John Forbes Kerry.

Karenna Gore-Schiff, arguing that the 2000 election was stolen from her father when the US Supreme Court ended Florida’s recount drama in Mr Bush’s favour, said: “We know we really won. They won’t steal it again.”

Tim Reid The Times