Chicago: She walked out wearing a dark navy suit and took her place on the stage to the sounds of Beyoncé’s powerful campaign anthem, Freedom.

Across the packed arena, the jubilant crowd chanted her name, many dressed in white – the universal colour of female empowerment – while many others were visibly overcome with emotion.

And on the other side of the country was Donald Trump, still coming to terms with the fact the political landscape he dominated so recently has been so swiftly upended.

“Thank you, thank you”: Kamala Harris receives a rapturous welcome to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.Credit: AP

In one of the most important speeches of her political life, Kamala Harris formally accepted the Democratic Party’s nomination for president, making history as the first black and south Asian woman to do so.

Over 40 minutes, she introduced herself to voters and framed the stakes of an election she described as “not only the most important of our lives”, but also “one of the most important in the life of our nation”.

“Our nation has a precious, fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism, and divisive battles of the past,” she said, casting herself as someone who can bring a fiercely fractured nation together.

“I will be a president who unites us around our highest aspirations. A president who leads – and listens. Who is realistic, practical, and has common sense. And always fights for the American people.”

Inspiration: Amara Ajagu takes in Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, on the fourth day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago.Credit: Todd Heisler/The New York Times

Harris accomplished everything she wanted to in her speech, sounding increasingly presidential as the minutes passed. But what matters most is not what the die-hard Democrats at the........

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