Nate Cohn: “In polls, a majority of voters say they are deeply dissatisfied with the state of the country. They say the political and economic system is broken. In short, they want change.”
“Mr. Trump is a change candidate. Mr. Biden was not. Not only did he represent the status quo, but he also struggled to communicate a vision for his second term. His campaign to defend democracy and abortion rights was, essentially, an effort to defend the system and America as it was before Mr. Trump. Even Mr. Biden’s 2020 campaign to ‘restore the soul of the nation’ or bring a ‘return to normalcy’ was a promise to return to pre-Trump politics. That may have seemed refreshing to voters amid the chaos of the Trump presidency, but it doesn’t seem to be enough for voters today.”
“With Ms. Harris, Democrats will have another chance to make the case that they can improve the nation’s fortunes. For one, she’s neither Mr. Biden nor Mr. Trump — two figures who have been in public life for decades. For another, she’s not the president. She may be burdened by voters’ perceptions of Mr. Biden’s record, but she’ll have room to distinguish herself. She even has room to argue for a new direction.”
