Vice President Harris is tasked with keeping her momentum going as she heads to the Democratic National Convention next week, eager to re-introduce herself to the American public.
Her one-month-long candidacy has rejuvenated the party in ways President Biden struggled to do, but she will also be faced with mapping out what a Harris presidency will look like and selling herself with a fresh agenda.
“I think most Americans have not spent a lot of time thinking about what Vice President Harris has done for the past four years here, and that’s why this convention is such a critical moment,” said David Thomas, a Democratic strategist and former aide to then-Vice President Al Gore.
“It is a way to introduce her to the country, to folks who may not follow what’s going on inside the beltway as much as we do. I think it will be an introduction to the country and to people who are like, ‘yeah we know she’s been vice president but who is she?’” he added.
Harris spent the last month fundraising, releasing ads about her background and personal story, and trying out new messaging tactics for her campaign, warning that another term under former President Trump would set the country back and promising a new way forward.
She has also unveiled her economic plan, which she calls a way to create an “opportunity economy” and a priority for her first 100 days in office. It includes a federal ban on price gouging, a plan to end the housing shortage through the construction of new units, and a plan to expand the child tax credit.
The groundwork she has set at a record-fast pace will be on full display when she delivers her acceptance speech on Thursday night where she’s likely to meet the same excitement that she’s seen constantly for weeks on the campaign trail across the country.
“Democrats are fired up. They now lead the much-vaunted enthusiasm gap and are showing up in big rallies, signing up for volunteer shifts and donating records amount of grassroots dollars. The charge coming out of the convention will be one to keep everyone’s foot on the gas,” said Clayton Cox, former Democratic National Committee (DNC) national finance director.
The question that has lingered throughout her rapid campaign, however is if she can keep up the momentum. Democrats will be closely watching her speech on Thursday to hear her plans for a victory over Trump in November along with victories for Democrats down ballot.
Harris’s allies argue she’s up to the task.
“The momentum is great and she will continue to bring the party together –- this time, in a celebratory way. I’m not concerned here. She’s going to be fantastic,” a former Harris aide said.
Harris has upended the campaign in part by taking the lead and closing the gap on Trump in a national polling average by Decision Desk HQ/The Hill in which she leads by 0.3 points and is ahead of the former president in six out of the seven battleground states.
“I think people are just excited to see her, in this first real big moment, be the leader of the party and I think there’s going to be an energy and enthusiasm when she walks in that convention hall that’s going to blow the top off the United Center,” Thomas said.
“It’s going to be a very exciting moment so I’m not so sure what specific policy proposals she may or may not mention is going to matter as much as here is our leader who’s taking over and going to lead the charge in November,” he added.
Republicans appeared fully in sync behind Trump during their convention last month, when they gathered in Wisconsin. Since Harris took over the Democratic ticket just days after the GOP convention ended, Trump’s campaign has struggled with her surge in the polls.
Republicans maintain their argument that Harris is experiencing a honeymoon period that will fade away after the convention next week.
“The real challenge is going to be when the honeymoon period for Harris’s ascension comes to an end and you get to brass tax,” said Marc Lampkin, a GOP lobbyist and former deputy campaign manager for Bush for President. “Once you get past the convention, that’s when there needs to be an examination of both sides and lots of voters need to make the determination over am I better off today than I was four years ago.”
Harris’s speech is set to follow a line up of three current and former presidents. Biden will kick off the week with a speech on Monday followed by former Presidents Obama and Clinton who will speak on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.
In a preview of things to come, Harris and Biden appeared unified at an event last week in Maryland with the president now taking on the attack dog role against Trump, which he is likely to maintain ahead of November as a way to support his hand-picked successor.
“She’s going to make one hell of a president,” Biden told the crowd.
Barbara Perry, a presidential studies professor at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center, said Harris is playing her part in being “completely gracious and graceful” toward the president after replacing him at the top of the ticket.
“She has been pitch perfect all the way through,” acknowledging that Harris now must keep that momentum going when she formally accepts the nomination.
“She will have to hit it out of the park again,” she said.
