Dems reach out to community on eve of convention kickoff

As delegates and supporters from around the nation converged on Charlotte, the festival served as a marketplace for traditional Democratic causes. 

"(CarolinaFest) is way to get out and touch people," said North Carolina delegate Joe Alston. 

Among the entertainment, vendors and exhibits, hundreds of volunteers were also registering voters. 

Charlotta Chung, a campaign volunteer for President Barack Obama, said she thinks inviting the community to participate in convention activities will get voters' attention.

"The fact that it's such an open and transparent convention, with community credentials being distributed and people actually being invited to participate, I think we're harnessing that energy and leveraging for a lot of good," Chung said.

During Obama's 2008 presidential campaign, the Democratic Party signed up about 25,000 volunteers during the national convention in Denver. In Charlotte, the party hopes to double that number with outreach events like CarolinaFest.