Democrats are opening their national convention in Philadelphia eager to show off a forward-looking party united behind Hillary Clinton. But they face lingering bitterness among supporters of defeated rival Bernie Sanders and a fresh political mess of the party's own making.

Veteran reporters Essex Porter and Dave Wagner will lead our team coverage. Each has more than 35 years’ experience covering political conventions.

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The resignation of Debbie Wasserman Schultz as chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee made for a rocky start on Sunday. The Florida congresswoman heeded Sanders' longstanding call to leave as party chief. Her departure comes a few days after the publication of 19,000 hacked emails, which the Vermont senator said confirmed his belief the national party played favorites for Clinton during the primary.

Wasserman Schultz's abrupt departure was undoubtedly an effort to keep the Democrats' gathering from devolving into the tumult that marred last week's Republican National Convention.

But at a Florida delegation breakfast Monday morning, angry Democrats heckled the outgoing party chief with boos and cries of "shame!" on Monday as the party tried to heal divisions before this week's national convention begins.

In her first remarks since announcing her resignation on Sunday, the Florida congresswoman struggled to be heard in her Monday morning address before her home-state delegation. Some delegates, apparently disappointed supporters of her primary rival, Bernie Sanders, jeered and waved signs reading "Thanks for the 'help,' Debbie," and more simply, "E-mail."

Her supporters pushed back, standing on chairs and yelling at the Sanders people to step back or sit down.

Wasserman Schultz tried to shout over the raucous crowd, saying, "We have to make sure that we move together in a unified way!"

The scene was a troubling display of tumult for Democrats who awoke Monday to a firestorm over hacked party emails. The correspondence appeared to show top officials at the supposedly neutral Democratic National Committee favoring Hillary Clinton in the presidential primaries against Sanders.

The embarrassing emails, posted by WikiLeaks over the weekend, have ripped open the primary wounds and exposed a rift that threatens to undermine Democrats' attempt to display four days of focus on putting Clinton in the White House.

The party announced Monday it would kick off its convention with speeches from some of its most popular figures.Elizabeth Warren, a favorite of liberals, will deliver the keynote address at the Democratic convention.

The Massachusetts senator speaks Monday night in an opening lineup that also includes first lady Michelle Obama, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who finished second in the Democratic primary.

Sanders will notably deliver the night's closing address. Sanders generated enormous enthusiasm among young people and liberals during the Democratic primary, voters Hillary Clinton needs to show up for her in November.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump is brushing off claims that Russia is trying to help his campaign by leaking thousands of emails from the Democratic National Committee.

Trump said in a Tweet Monday that reports of Russia releasing the emails because Russian President Vladimir Putin likes him is "the new joke in town."

The Republican presidential nominee was reacting a day after Democrat Hillary Clinton's campaign manager accused "Russian state actors" of breaking into the DNC's emails to boost Trump. Robby Mook told CNN that it's no coincidence the emails are coming out on the eve of the party's nominating convention in Philadelphia. Some Republicans opposed to Trump have sought to cast him as pro-Putin.

Wikileaks has posted emails that suggested the DNC was favoring Clinton during the primary season. The disclosures forced the resignation of DNC chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

In another Tweet, Trump says "bad judgment was on display" by DNC officials who criticized Clinton's primary rival Bernie Sanders.

Live updates from the DNC

Cox Media Group