Kamala Harris’s campaign lacks detail – but that’s only helped her transform the race

In that time Democrats pulled together a well-scripted national convention with slickly produced promotional videos, political set-pieces and musical interludes, all done to boost the new nominee. It was a remarkable test of skill by party operatives under extreme pressure.

Over the course of four days in Chicago – and in the packed campaign rallies Ms Harris has held over the past few weeks – the outlines of her campaign strategy have begun to take shape.

And it’s not exactly what one would expect from a sitting vice-president who has occupied an office in the White House for three-and-a-half-years.

Ms Harris is pushing hard to be viewed as the candidate of change in this race. One who, as she said in her convention speech on Thursday, can “chart a new way forward”.

This strategy is in part born out of necessity. Across the globe democracies have been roiled by voter unrest. As economies struggle to recover from the Covid pandemic, regional conflicts churn and tensions over immigration flare up, political incumbents have faced deeply unhappy electorates in Canada, the UK, Germany and India among others.

Polling indicated that President Joe Biden, before he abandoned his re-election campaign last month, was set to confront similar challenges.