This was always a challenging race for Vice President Kamala Harris. She started late and ran against a tough opponent in a bleak environment. She faced an electorate hungry for change, upset with the direction of the country and the economy.

If she wins, she will be able to credit a handful of factors that helped her fight those headwinds and defeat former president Donald Trump.

A Kamala Harris victory would leave little doubt about the potency of reproductive rights as an issue.Credit: Marija Ercegovac

Here is what analysts will be saying should Harris win.

The vice president’s embrace of the traditional Democratic get-out-the-vote effort, relying on paid staff and unions to knock on doors, will have proved to be every bit as effective as promised. By contrast, Trump largely outsourced this work to allies, including Elon Musk, who had far less experience in the world of organising and reaching voters.

The Harris campaign said it had dispatched 2500 staff members from 353........

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