Vice President Kamala Harris enters this week’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago with a small lead over former President Trump in national polling averages that few would have thought likely even a month ago.

The truncated nature of the race — initially thought by many to present an added hurdle — has played to Harris’ strengths, while minimizing her flaws.

The Nov. 5 election will take place just 75 days after the convention ends on Thursday. Voting begins even earlier in many states, including prized battleground Pennsylvania, where some counties will begin handing out ballots next month.

Before President Biden dropped out of the race in July, many Democrats saw Harris as a risky candidate, while also worrying that anyone taking his place on the ballot would face logistical challenges.

Here’s why the snap election, unprecedented in modern American politics, has been helpful to Harris so far, and how Trump could reclaim a contest that is still up for grabs:

No primary, no problem with defining core beliefs

Harris started her race for her party’s 2020 nomination with the type of excitement she is drawing from Democratic voters today. More than 20,000 people showed up for her January 2019 announcement rally in Oakland, and she raised big dollars as she established herself as a top-tier contender.

By December of that year, before ballots were cast or caucuses held, she had dropped out. Harris had trouble defining her core beliefs compared with those of others in a big field of Democratic hopefuls. As a result, voters lacked a sense of what she stood for.

Was she a lefty competing for progressive populist votes with Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts? Was she a centrist sparring with Biden and Pete Buttigieg, who is now Biden’s transportation secretary?

“She’s not necessarily easy to pigeonhole as being a progressive or centrist or moderate,” said Brian Brokaw, a former Harris advisor who ran a group supporting Harris in the primary. “She’s confounded people.”

Her attempts to straddle the party’s ideological divides — with her own universal healthcare plan and a partial embrace of the movement to reform or abolish the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency — failed to win over her party.

She doesn’t have to worry about those fights now that the race is a binary choice — with brighter lines between her and Trump on issues such as abortion, democracy and the economy.

“She’s benefiting so much from being a foil against Trump, in a particularly compelling and positive way, that everyone’s looking at her differently,” said Faiz Shakir, a senior advisor to Sanders.

“In a primary process, voters would be asking, ‘Could she be the nominee? Should she be? Is she the best?’” Shakir added. “Here, you’re either for Trump or Harris.”

Less need for an ‘Etch-A-Sketch’

Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign was famously undermined when a top advisor said the Republican could erase some of the conservative positions he espoused in the GOP primary with an “Etch-A-Sketch” to appeal to a more moderate electorate in the general election.

Harris is doing a bit of that now, leaving behind her support four years ago for a universal health plan and a ban on fracking as she tries to win votes in Pennsylvania and other swing states. Republicans are trying to remind voters of her more liberal stances, but it’s harder than it would be if her shifts were more recent, and if Harris didn’t have her Biden administration record to run on.

She’s also facing less pressure from the left in her party than she would if she‘d competed in the primaries, when interest groups tend to use their leverage. She’s been leaning into her support for Biden’s bipartisan border enforcement deal, for example, avoiding some of the criticism from within the Democratic Party that Biden faced this year when he negotiated it with Senate Republicans. Trump pressured Republican lawmakers to kill the deal because he wants to keep the border as a political issue.

A turnkey operation

Harris inherited Biden’s entire campaign apparatus, avoiding the management clashes and staff turnover that hampered her 2020 campaign and early tenure as vice president.

The campaign was designed around Biden’s strengths and loyalties, which presented a challenge. But the tone has shifted quickly toward Harris’ style, which is more confrontational yet lighter as she tries to contrast her sense of joy with Trump’s grievances. The campaign was also built around a ground game, in anticipation of a tight race in which turning out core voters will be crucial.

Catching Trump off guard

Trump designed his campaign around Biden’s weaknesses, including his advanced age. Now Trump is the candidate facing some of the same questions.

Trump’s advisors believe Harris is a ripe target and have urged him to focus attacks on immigration and the economy — two areas where he holds polling advantages over her. But he has so far been unable to avoid distractions.

“I think I’m entitled to personal attacks” on Harris, Trump said Thursday at a news conference.

The calendar has kept the honeymoon going. Can it last?

Harris has lucked into great timing. She got a boost of excitement from relieved Democrats when Biden withdrew, and again with the announcement of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, and is now entering a convention that will bring media focus including four nights of network airtime.

She’s been on the road almost the entire time, avoiding sit-down interviews and other unscripted encounters, which have given her trouble in the past.

Trump’s allies have been furious over what they see as an unfair glide path.

“The only thing that’s in Harris’ favor — the only thing — is the nonstop gusher of adoring coverage she’s getting from the media, who don’t seem inclined to wonder why she won’t answer a single question or explain the radical, leftist record she’s running from,” said Tim Murtaugh, Trump’s 2020 communications director, who recently joined his 2024 campaign. “She’s a weak vice president from a failed administration, but the media chooses to write about her ‘vibe’ instead.”

Trump’s 2020 campaign manager, Bill Stepien, said he was dubious that Harris’ momentum could continue, arguing that the dust had yet to settle following the Democratic campaign shake-up. Harris’ perceived advantages could backfire, he argued.

“She’s been offered a honeymoon period, which has certainly put some wind in her back,” Stepien said. “On the other hand, going through a primary process, running the gamut against a slate of opponents, tests you. It tests you on the debate stage. It tests you on the stump. It allows you to tweak and refine messaging.”

The pressure is still on

For all of Harris’ good fortune, polling shows that the race remains winnable for either candidate — tighter than it was eight years ago, when Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in the electoral college despite losing the popular vote. That gives Trump plenty of room to rebound and Harris time to stumble.

Her lack of sit-down interviews or full-scale news conferences since winning the nomination will increase the stakes when she does agree to one, or holds her first debate with Trump, on Sept. 10. She could also suffer from a twist in the news, such as a national economic setback or a shift in the war between Israel and Hamas.

“You have no room for error,” said Karen Finney, a Harris friend who served in a senior communications role for Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign. “Everybody is always bringing your A-game to an election. This is your A-plus-plus game. There isn’t time.”

Finney argues that Harris has more than just luck and timing: She worked as vice president to build a message and a political coalition that would not have been there had another Democrat stepped in for Biden. But if she makes an error in a debate, she will have less time to rebound, Finney said.

“Joe Biden stepped down so we could have our best chance to beat Donald Trump,” she said. “Of course that creates pressure.”

Vice President Kamala Harris needs to ensure she is “striking the right balance” at the Democratic National Convention, with Democratic strategists explaining it is “critical” for her to share her record with the voters, while focusing on the future and enhancing her “momentum” as the race formally enters the general election. 

The Democratic National Convention kicks off in Chicago on Monday and will run through Thursday, when Harris formally accepts the Democratic nomination for the presidency. 

Top Democrats and supporters from across the nation are expected to coalesce their support behind Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz — support they have seen building since President Biden suspended his re-election campaign and the vice president launched her own. 

Democrat strategists are telling Fox News Digital that Harris needs to make sure she seizes on the “surging voter enthusiasm.” 

TRUMP CAMPAIGN PICKS UP THE PACE, EYES COUNTER-PROGRAMMING DURING DEMOCRATS’ CONVENTION

“The most important thing to do is keep the ball rolling — they have been on a roll for the last couple of weeks,” Brad Bannon, a Democrat strategist, pollster, and President of Bannon Communications Research, told Fox News Digital. “Once President Biden decided to step away, Vice President Kamala Harris did a great job seizing the opportunity — she raised a lot of money quickly; solidified her hold on the nomination; made a great pick that turned out to be very popular in Walz; and what they need to do at this convention is keep the ball rolling and keep that momentum going.” 

And Max Burns, founder of Third Degree Strategies, a Democrat firm, told Fox News Digital that the enthusiasm is there. 

“So far the polls and surging voter enthusiasm are both showing Democrats have already successfully launched Kamala Harris as our nominee. Now she’ll have a chance to tell her story to a huge, nationwide audience at the convention,” Burns said, touting Harris’ choice of Walz as her running mate. 

“Expect the DNC to feel a lot more like a celebration than a dry political convention,” Burns said.

Democratic vice presidential candidate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz speaks during a campaign rally with the Democratic presidential candidate, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, at the Liacouras Center at Temple University on August 6, 2024, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

TRUMP ARGUES HARRIS IS MORE LIBERAL THAN BERNIE SANDERS – HERE’S WHAT THE VERMONT SENATOR TOLD FOX NEWS 

A Democratic source also weighed in, urging Harris and Walz to “keep doing what they’re doing.” 

But Kaivan Shroff, a Democratic strategist, New York delegate and former digital organizer at Hillary for America, told Fox News Digital that the Harris-Walz campaign needs to focus on looking to the future and how their policy proposals will help down the road, versus presenting their past record. 

“We will obviously hear about the Biden-Harris administration’s historic accomplishments, but that is not enough,” Shroff said. “Voters care a lot less about what you have already done for them than they care about what you will do for them going forward.” 

Shroff said it is “critical” that Democrats ensure they are “striking the right balance to make sure folks know what Democrats have accomplished, while also focusing on the future.” 

Vice President Kamala Harris holds a campaign rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, Friday, August 16, 2024. (The Image Direct for Fox News Digital)

As for the convention, Shroff said the team of Democrats putting on the event is “extraordinary.” 

“The production value will impress folks,” he said. “I’ll be looking to see how the already agile and innovative Harris digital operation capitalizes on the storytelling and key moments to bring those not there with us into the room.” 

Meanwhile, Bannon told Fox News Digital that Harris likely will not attempt to separate herself from President Biden and his administration’s policies “too much.” 

WHAT THE LATEST POLLS IN THREE KEY BATTLEGROUND STATES SHOW IN THE HARRIS-TRUMP SHOWDOWN

Bannon cited Harris’ newly minted economic policy plan, which she rolled out Friday. The plan would implement federal price controls in order to stop “price gouging” on groceries amid inflation. 

“The economic program — she did something that I had hoped Biden would do months ago,” Bannon said. “It is a big step she took, and it just shows not only is there going to be a difference in economic policy, but I think her tone overall is a lot different than Biden’s.” 

Bannon said he anticipates Harris’ campaign will be “a lot more aggressive than Joe Biden’s was.” 

“Biden represented himself as a calming influence in a divided nation,” Bannon told Fox News Digital. “I think you’re going to see Harris strike a much more aggressive tone.” 

He added: “I think she set the tone for being much more aggressive the day after Biden stepped aside.” 

A bill that would have required all California families to enroll their children in kindergarten was rejected by the state Legislature on Thursday, the latest of several failed attempts over the years to make the grade compulsory.

The legislation, AB 2226, aimed to mandate the state’s youngest students attend kindergarten before being admitted to the first grade. According to the California Department of Education, 95% of students already attend kindergarten, though it is not required.

Instead, students are required to attend school when they turn 6 years old — and it’s up to families if they start in kindergarten or go straight to first grade.

More than 14,000 California students skipped kindergarten in the 2022-23 school year, the Department of Education estimates.

Proponents of the bill, including the Los Angeles Unified School District and the California Teachers Assn., pointed to research that shows early education is crucial to a student’s long-term education, noting that kindergarten is mandatory in 19 states and D.C.

Data from the Los Angeles Unified School District show that children who attend kindergarten do better on assessments later in elementary school.

The bill had no official opposition but was killed without debate in the Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday during a fast-paced fiscal hearing where hundreds of bills were approved or rejected based on their price tag.

According to a legislative analysis of the bill, it could result in “significant” costs of hundreds of millions of dollars.

“The lens we were looking through was the cost. Anything that we pass and the governor signs means it’s probably something that has to come out of the budget next year,” Sen. Anna Caballero (D-Salinas), who chairs the appropriations committee and voted for AB 2226 earlier this year, said following Thursday’s hearing in Sacramento.

California faces a $46.8-billion budget deficit, and Gov. Gavin Newsom and lawmakers have already made billions in cuts to blunt the problem.

Despite its lack of organized opposition, efforts to force kindergarten have failed before.

Newsom — an early education advocate — vetoed a similar bill in 2022, calling the effort “laudable” but saying the costs were not accounted for in the state’s budget. Former Gov. Jerry Brown before him also vetoed the proposal, arguing that the comparatively small amount of families who forgo kindergarten should have the freedom to choose what’s best for them.

Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi (D-Rolling Hills Estates) authored AB 2226 and said that kindergarten is “an essential component” of education that “builds the foundation” for skills such as literacy and socialization.

He cited data from the California Research Bureau that show that Latino children are the least likely to enroll in kindergarten, raising questions about equity.

“I was disappointed but not surprised,” Muratsuchi said following Thursday’s hearing. “I think more than anything its a reflection of our current budget deficit, but the data is clear and we need to make sure we close the kindergarten gap. We’re definitely not giving up.”