By replacing President Joe Biden with Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party has brought new life to an abysmal presidential campaign. But with more than two months to go before the elections, US public opinion is evenly divided between her and Republican candidate Donald Trump.

Harris has painted herself as the young, forward-looking alternative for the country, “and has now made Trump look small and backward”, argues Democratic strategist Simon Rosenberg. But as McClatchy national politics correspondent David Catanese points out, the Democrats are vulnerable on immigration and the economy, so the race is far from over.