Assured Kamala Harris cuts a transformed figure in New Orleans – and avoids talk of Biden

While the president insists he will remain in the election race, the vice-president's poll numbers have improved and her speeches have become more assertive

The ideal understudy is talented but inconspicuous, prepared at all times to step into the top role and yet content to never do so.

In New Orleans, at the 30th annual Essence Festival of Culture, gone was the Kamala Harris of the drab brown, chair-matching suit and the halting, technical commentary about American policy needs. That was the Harris who spoke here in 2019, then a Democratic presidential primary contender trailed by fewer than 10 reporters.