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There’s a message that Kamala Harris and the Democrats are trying to send in these final weeks: The Democrats are patriots too.
It was all over the place at the Democratic National Convention, in the chants of “U.S.A.!” that broke out on the convention floor, in the vice president’s speech and in a speech by Wes Moore, the governor of Maryland.
This effort to reclaim patriotism can be seen as a way to reclaim more white rural voters. But it’s also an appeal to disaffected voters, especially some Black voters, who have lost faith in the system altogether.
In this week’s “Run-Up,” how the Democrats are using love of country to try to reach the skeptics — the people torn on whether to vote at all.
On today’s episode:
Wes Moore, governor of Maryland
Prentiss Haney, community organizer
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For the people still on the fence about 2024, Tuesday night’s debate was an important data point.
How would Vice President Kamala Harris differentiate herself from President Biden? How would former President Donald Trump come across when facing a new opponent? Would this matchup, the first time these candidates met, be enough to help these undecided voters make a decision?
On today’s “Run-Up,” we look at how they are thinking after the debate. Up first, we watch the debate with Corrie Zech, an undecided voter in Ohio.
We initially met her back in June at a watch party for the first presidential debate. Listen to that episode here.
Then we catch up with undecided voters we first talked to for this episode, ahead of the debate.
Everyone tuned in Tuesday night. They said they’re closer to making a decision but, with less than two months to go, have yet to fully make up their minds.
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Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris will face off in Philadelphia on Tuesday night for the second presidential debate of 2024. It will be the first time the two candidates meet on a debate stage.
They enter the debate in a neck-and-neck race, with Mr. Trump leading Ms. Harris, 48 percent to 47 percent, according to the latest national polling from The New York Times and Siena College.
That means the people still on the fence — those unsure about whom to vote for or whether to vote at all — are potentially the most important audience for the debate.
Today, “The Run-Up” talks with Ruth Igielnik, a Times polling editor, about the 5 percent of voters who are still undecided. We then speak with four undecided voters to ask what they are hoping to hear tonight.
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Former president Trump frequently takes credit for helping to overturn Roe v. Wade.
But in recent weeks, he has posted on Truth Social, his social media site, that his administration would be “great for women and their reproductive rights.” He suggested that he might vote for a Florida ballot measure allowing abortion up to around 24 weeks, before reversing his position. And he floated the idea that under a Trump administration, in vitro fertilization treatments would be covered by insurance companies or the federal government.
With these shifting messages, Donald Trump is basically daring anti-abortion voters to turn on him. So will they?
On this week’s show, we check in with Dr. R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a leading voice for American evangelicals, to find out.
On today’s episode
Dr. R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. Listen to an earlier conversation with Dr. Mohler on “The Run-Up” here.
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This election, like a lot of elections before it, may come down to which candidate voters think might help them with their grocery bills and housing costs — the essential stuff of everyday economics.
That’s what people around the country say — and what they tell pollsters too.
But the fact that life feels expensive right now is not just something voters are talking about.
Campaigns are too.
Kamala Harris just released an ad focused on how hard it is to own a home in the United States and an economic policy aimed at curbing prices. And Donald Trump has been on the trail touting his economic record.
So, this week on “The Run-Up,” we spend time talking with people who feel the economy is not working for them — and talking to Jason DeParle, who covers poverty for The New York Times, about how the candidates say they’ll help the poorest Americans.
On today’s episode
Jason DeParle, who writes about poverty in the United States for The New York Times.
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On the final night of the Democratic National Convention, Vice President Kamala Harris took the stage and formally accepted her party’s nomination.
After the balloons fell, Astead Herndon and his colleagues Maya King and Jennifer Medina broke down the moments that stood out to them from the night — from people touched by gun violence telling their stories to the way Ms. Harris talked about Israel and the war in Gaza to how she told her own story. Plus, there was the rumored special guest who never materialized.
On today’s episode:
Maya King, a politics reporter for The New York Times
Jennifer Medina, a politics reporter for The New York Times
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Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at the Democratic National Convention tonight, formalizing her rapid ascent to the top of the Democratic ticket and capping a very unusual path to the nomination.
No primary. No serious opposition. No real robust sense of what her legislative priorities might be.
On today’s show, a quest to answer this question: Is a Harris-led Democratic Party substantively different than the Democratic Party of Joe Biden?
As they all gathered in Chicago, we put that question to Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Shawn Fain, the president of the United Auto Workers union — and the man hosting Democrats in his town, Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson.
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After two days of the Democratic National Convention, one thing is clear.
Democrats are united behind their new nominee.
And Kamala Harris has those in the Democratic Party, from the high-profile speakers to the delegates in the hall, thinking they can win.
In fact, the unity is such that after months of worrying about whether the convention would be upended by protests over Israel’s war in Gaza, so far, things feel quiet.
But does anger over foreign policy still pose an electoral threat?
On today’s show, a conversation with Abbas Alawieh, an uncommitted delegate from Michigan, and people who came to Chicago to protest.
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Last night, thousands of people gathered in Chicago for the first night of the Democratic National Convention. And the crowd at the United Center was ready for a party.
The evening featured a cameo from their candidate, Vice President Kamala Harris, and speeches from Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and, closing out the night, President Biden.
Before he could begin his speech, he received a sustained round of applause — more than four minutes long.
It was just one memorable moment over the course of an evening that was both a goodbye party and kickoff event.
The Run-Up is coming to you from the D.N.C. all week.
Today: Night One in Chicago, where the Democrats attempted to reclaim a certain expression of patriotism, and gave thanks to Mr. Biden.
On today’s episode:
Reid Epstein, a politics correspondent for The New York Times.
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The Democratic National Convention kicks off in Chicago today, less than a month after Democrats changed their nominee in a remarkable political shake-up. To get set for the week, “The Run-Up” talks with Leah Daughtry, an at-large member of the Democratic National Committee, the chief executive of the 2008 and 2016 Democratic National Conventions and a co-chair of the convention rules committee, an incredibly significant role this year given the nominee switch.
She is the ultimate Democratic Party insider. And she is also remarkably candid and straightforward, particularly when it comes to providing insight on how party leaders make decisions.
Today, a conversation with Ms. Daughtry about how the Democratic Party got to this unusual moment — and what to expect from the convention.
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For much of the 2024 presidential election, it felt like there were pretty ideal conditions for a third-party candidate. Republicans and Democrats had both lined up behind broadly unpopular — and familiar — candidates. In the spring, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was polling at 10 percent in The New York Times/Siena College survey of battleground states, and sustained interest in his candidacy was enough to raise alarm among his major-party rivals.
As that alarm grew, the Run-Up team traveled to Royal Oak, Mich., for a Kennedy campaign event to ask people how they were thinking about a third-party vote when the stakes for that decision were so high.
Since that visit, a lot has changed in the race. There’s a new name on top of the Democratic ticket. And a lot has changed in Mr. Kennedy’s campaign, too. But third-party interest among voters who are sick of the system or wary of both parties remains.
On today’s show: what made RFK Jr. such a threatening spoiler — and how the RFK-curious in a crucial state are thinking about the race now.
For more on RFK Jr., listen to Astead's interview with the candidate in March.
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On Tuesday afternoon, just hours after Vice President Harris announced that Tim Walz, governor of Minnesota, would be her running mate, Astead sat down with Senator Bernie Sanders in Burlington, Vt.
Mr. Sanders, the Vermont progressive who has twice run for president himself, supported the choice of Mr. Walz.
But a Harris-Walz ticket was not what he was envisioning for 2024. He was a staunch defender of President Biden remaining in the race, arguing that Mr. Biden was best positioned to defeat former president Donald Trump.
Now, since Mr. Biden bowed out and Ms. Harris has stepped in, Mr. Sanders has raised questions about what the Harris campaign’s economic message will be and how she will position herself.
More recently though, Mr. Sanders has been on the campaign trail for Ms. Harris.
His journey is indicative of a larger question facing the progressive wing of the Democratic Party — a question we explore today.
With this new Democratic ticket, are progressives all in for Harris?
On today’s episode: Senator Bernie Sanders, independent of Vermont
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It has been less than two weeks since President Biden dropped his re-election bid and threw his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris.
Already, Ms. Harris has closed the gap with former President Donald J. Trump in some national polls. The Harris campaign said it had raised more than $200 million in a week. Ms. Harris’s supporters even broke attendance records on Zoom, with one group gathering more than 160,000 people on a single call.
After more than a year of a presidential contest that was defined by its stability — and people who said they really didn’t like their options — there has been a clear vibe shift.
With just under 100 days left until Election Day, we wanted to check in on this brand-new race. We spoke to Zoom rally organizers, first-time campaign donors and people who were previously planning to sit the whole thing out.
Where did the new energy come from, and how sustainable is it?
Do you have a question about the 2024 election? We want to hear from you. Fill out this form or email us at [email protected]
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Warning: this episode contains strong language and mentions of sexual abuse.
Since 2019, our host, Astead Herndon, has been reporting on Kamala Harris — from her campaign for the 2020 Democratic nomination to her time as vice president. Over the years, the same questions have swirled around her.
What does she stand for? How does she make decisions? Was she only selected as President Biden’s running mate because of her race and gender?
Today, Ms. Harris is the presumptive Democratic nominee after Mr. Biden decided to withdraw from the 2024 race. Americans are once again looking at Ms. Harris as their potential president.
And on “The Run-Up,” we wanted to play two excerpts from conversations that get at those essential questions. One is with a longtime friend of Ms. Harris. And one is with the vice president herself.
On today’s episode:
Senator Laphonza Butler, Democrat of California
Vice President Kamala Harris
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When it finally happened, it felt both inevitable, and unfathomable.
President Biden was out of the 2024 presidential race.
Shortly after making that announcement, he threw his support behind his vice president, Kamala Harris, to be the next Democratic nominee.
Mr. Biden had finally fulfilled his promise to be a bridge to the next generation — albeit under enormous pressure.
Ms. Harris issued a statement later in the day, saying that she was honored to have received President Biden’s endorsement and that she intends to “earn and win” the nomination.
Today, in a special episode of The Run-Up, a top democratic donor discusses what ultimately toppled the Biden campaign and a colleague gives us an inside look at where Democrats go next.
On today's show:
Robert Wolf, a Democratic donor
Reid Epstein, a politics correspondent for The New York Times.
Do you have a question about the 2024 election? We want to hear from you. Fill out this form or email us at [email protected]
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Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the U.S.A.” has become former President Donald J. Trump’s unofficial theme music on the campaign trail. Here at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, the song was performed live by none other than Mr. Greenwood himself, as Mr. Trump walked into the arena on Monday.
The anthem, released in 1984, is essentially a song about togetherness and the diversity of the United States. And it’s now become tied to a candidate who has often represented division and chaos.
As Mr. Trump is set to deliver the culminating address at the convention today with a newfound message of unity, we explore that message — through the song that has become his soundtrack.
We talk to Republicans, including Mr. Greenwood, about what defines American values and whether those values are reflected in the candidacy of Mr. Trump.
On today’s episode:
Lee Greenwood, country music star
Do you have a question about the 2024 election? We want to hear from you. Fill out this form or email us at [email protected]
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On the second day of the Republican National Convention, a collection of Donald Trump’s former challengers took the stage. There were people who ran against him in 2016 — like Ted Cruz, Ben Carson and Marco Rubio. And people who just challenged him this year — Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis and Vivek Ramaswamy.
No matter how fervently, or recently, they had criticized him, all voiced their support for him and emphasized a message of unity.
For analysis of Night 2 of the R.N.C., and this parade of Trump rivals turned boosters, Astead is joined by his Times Audio colleague Michael Barbaro, host of “The Daily.”
Do you have a question about the 2024 election? We want to hear from you. Fill out this form or email us at [email protected]
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Republicans had a big day on Monday. Donald Trump picked J.D. Vance as his running mate. Two days after surviving an assassination attempt, he officially became his party’s presidential nominee. And the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee got underway, with a festive mood among the delegates.
The Run-Up is here in Milwaukee for the occasion. In special episodes this week, we’ll tell you what we’re seeing — and what that tells us about Trump’s Republican Party.
To kick things off, Jess Bidgood, who writes the On Politics newsletter, joined Astead to analyze key moments from Night 1.
Do you have a question about the 2024 election? We want to hear from you. Fill out this form or email us at [email protected]
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You’ve seen the image by now: Former President Donald J. Trump has blood running down the side of his face. He’s being escorted off his rally’s stage by the Secret Service, and he pauses to look at the crowd, his fist proudly in the air.
It’s too soon to know how the attempt on his life on Saturday in Pennsylvania will affect the outcome of the race. But Trump’s allies have already made the shock of the assassination attempt, and the violence, part of a clear political message.
To hear them tell it, Trump and his party are under attack.
This sense of persecution has long been core to Trump’s message. And the events of the weekend will only amplify that.
Today, as the Republican National Convention gets underway, we’re digging into that message with the Trump supporters who most embody it. And we’re doing so from their unlikely headquarters, where they gather every evening in Washington D.C.: outside the D.C. Jail.
Do you have a question about the 2024 election? We want to hear from you. Fill out this form or email us at [email protected]
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President Biden is telling people to Google it. Former president Donald J. Trump is distancing himself from it. Even the actress Taraji P. Henson talked about it onstage at the B.E.T. Awards.
Project 2025. It’s a blueprint for an incoming conservative president — presumably Donald Trump — spearheaded by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.
And now it is everywhere in this tumultuous moment of the 2024 presidential race.
But what is it? Is it a guide to a possible second Trump administration? And why are Democrats seizing on it now, as Mr. Biden struggles to quiet doubts about his ability to defeat Mr. Trump? This week, we’re working through those questions.
On today’s episode
Jonathan Swan, who covers politics and Donald Trump’s presidential campaign for The New York Times.
Representative Ro Khanna, Democrat of California.
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