Kamala Harris’s ascent in the race for the White House has imbued the party with joy and galvanized ranks

Tens of thousands of Democrats are expected to descend on Chicago this week for their party’s convention, bubbling with a feeling few had anticipated: pure, unconfined joy.

At the end of their four-day fete, when the red, white and blue balloons tumble from the rafters of the United Center, Kamala Harris will have become the first woman of color to accept a major party’s presidential nomination in American history. The moment will cap a frenzied few weeks for Democrats, following the vice-president’s sudden ascent to the top of the ticket in a development that has transformed the race for the White House and galvanized a party once resigned to a rematch between Donald Trump and Joe Biden.

“It’s a remarkable turn of events,” said Howard Dean, a former Democratic National Committee chairman and former Vermont governor. “The Democrats have now been resurrected.”