The speed and single-mindedness with which Kamala Harris secured the Democratic presidential nomination following Joe Biden’s sudden decision last weekend to step aside was astounding. Few expected the vice-president to attract a sufficient number of delegates and political endorsements prior to the party’s Chicago convention on 19 August, if then. Instead, Harris soared into an unassailable position within 48 hours of the White House announcement. Potential rivals tamely fell away. Now, even former president Barack Obama, who was said to have reservations and loves to meddle, has thrown his weight behind her.

Harris’s candidacy is of historic importance, and her feat has united the Democratic party, which many had thought impossible. It has also dispelled one of the main criticisms of her: that she lacks necessary drive and focus. After becoming vice-president in 2021, Harris was routinely dismissed as short on charisma and basic political skills. The conventional wisdom in Washington was that Biden selected her because she is a woman with........

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