Investors have recently been debating whether Democratic nominee Kamala Harris has already reached the peak of her campaign in the race for the upcoming presidential election. In a note released Friday, analysts at Piper Sandler weighed in on the matter.
The analysts discussed Harris’s recent speech at the Democratic National Convention (DNC), which they described as “excellent,” praising her confident delivery and her approach to addressing issues “in ways the vast majority of people could agree with.” Yet, they said there was very little in the way of policy substance during her speech.
“In fact, except for an extensive discussion of abortion, for most of the speech you couldn’t tell whether you were listening to a Democrat or Republican,” analysts wrote.
However, presenting one’s views in a manner that the broader public can agree with is “smart politics,” they added. “This is something politicians in both parties used to do all the time.”
Overall, {{0|Piper Sandler}}’s team believes the race between Harris and Trump is currently neck-and-neck, with the Vice President possibly holding a slight lead.
The positive reception of her recent speech at the DNC is expected to sustain her momentum for a few more days. Still, the analysts note that the tougher challenges lie ahead, including a debate with Trump, media scrutiny, and the need to present and defend a substantive policy agenda.
On one hand, analysts raised concerns about Harris’s vulnerabilities, pointing to the Biden-Harris record, her history of out-of-the-mainstream positions, and doubts about her capability as a strong president.
They argue that her "substance-free campaign also creates its own vulnerabilities" and that "she is going to make some mistakes, and possibly some major blunders that will raise doubts that were reflected in the polls only a few weeks ago."
On the other hand, while the media’s favorable coverage of Harris continues, the analysts believe it is up to her opponent to expose her weaknesses. Yet, they believe Trump’s attacks against Harris are poorly targeted, potentially alienating swing voters, particularly women.
“She could easily be the winner in a debate with Trump, especially if he doesn’t take a more disciplined approach to the campaign,” analysts remarked.
“This may be peak Kamala, but right now we are looking at a very close race.”