We spoke to voters before and after the Harris shake-up. Here's what we learned

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Last month, roughly a century ago in political time, we began talking with readers and voters who were discontented, or unhappy with the choices on the presidential ballot.

We received a written waterfall of insight. Thousands of voters who were undecided or unsure about their decision for 2024 sent us their thoughts.

Then, everything changed. Gunshots at a Pennsylvania campaign rally shocked the country and raised a new image of former President Donald Trump. Eight days later, a statement from President Joe Biden stunned , as he dropped out of the 2024 race.

How did those events affect voters? Especially those core voters who were the least happy and who might have the most influence on the election?

We have some answers, with a snapshot of the same voters before — and after — this wild ride of history.

These folks, who we’re calling the “deciders,” were deeply unhappy a month ago. Where are they now? Read on.

‘Increasingly hopeful’

Ben Bryant, 74
Retired lighting designer. Seattle
Democrat
Now: All in on Kamala Harris

Back in June, Bryant described himself as “frustrated and scared” thinking about a Biden-Trump rematch. He was begrudgingly ready to vote for Biden. But, he told us, “I would really like to be able to vote for someone who’s younger. The president is often seen as a figurehead. And Joe Biden, the optics are just not very good.”

Now, Bryant told us yesterday he is ”increasingly hopeful” that Democrats can win and that he is, “all in for Harris.” He would have preferred a ticket with Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg but he is firmly backing Harris. He remains unhappy about the lack of conversation over climate change and deeper issues in American life. But overall, Ben’s tone and optimism have clearly changed for the positive.

Plans to unhappily vote

Jessica Dalton, 44
Works in marketing. Salt Lake City
Registered Republican but does not vote by party
Now: Voting Harris, though she’s still dissatisfied

In June, Dalton said she was “frustrated and dissatisfied.” She wanted a leader who speaks to moderates, like Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah. She had hoped Biden could do that but ultimately concluded that she was “ready for more change than Joe Biden is ready, willing or able to offer.” Despite that, she was planning to unhappily vote for Biden. To her, Trump is a “self-appointed dictator” who she could not consider as a candidate.

Now, Dalton plans to be a Harris voter but she is not happy about the circumstance. “I’m dissatisfied with how our Democrat nominee came to be,” she wrote us. “It hasn’t escaped my attention that the primary process has been circumvented completely. I’m irritated that the conversation about Biden’s candidacy took place NOW instead of two years ago.” She is also worried that party politics are likely to give rise to sexism, racism and classism.

A notable shift

Ana Fernandez, 20
About to start law school. Miami
Democrat
Now: From dejected to excited. Voting for Harris

In June, she felt “a little dejected” about the upcoming election. Fernandez, who fled Cuba with her parents and crossed the southern border as a child, said, “I have not a lot of confidence that things are going the way that they should in this country.” She was planning on voting for Biden, though she harbored deep concerns about his fitness. “It is a little scary to think what happens if he decreases or his health declines,” she told us a few days before the June 27 debate.

Now, “I feel joyful, excited, so hopeful. So excited,” Fernandez told us this week. The Harris and Biden switch has added to some Democratic voters’ stress. But not for Fernandez. She is openly and happily on board for Harris. The lime-green memes borrowed from a pop star’s branding are helping. “She’s definitely energizing me,” she said. “I also love when Charli XCX posted that ‘kamala IS brat.’ That made me very happy.”

More uncertainty has followed

David Herring, 75
Retired Army officer. Okemos, Mich.
Republican
Now: Still a no on Trump. Less sure about Democrats.

In June, Herring wrote of Biden and Trump: “Is this the best we can do?” “My generation has made this mess. It will not get better until the next generation takes charge,” he added. In an interview, Herring said he could not stomach Trump. “If you’re not an honorable person … I couldn’t follow that.” He was considering, but was still uncomfortable with the thought of voting for Biden as the lesser of two evils.

Now, Herring seems even less sure. His deep doubts about Trump were upheld by the GOP convention. “In his acceptance speech at the GOP convention,” he wrote, “Trump started out encouraging but fell back into his usual rally speech.” Herring said he is still looking for dignity and decency in him. At the same time, he seems potentially farther away from voting for the Democratic ticket as well. “I do not know who I will vote for, the radical left or the Trump regime,” Herring wrote us this week. “I cannot at this point justify the lesser of two evils.”

Likely to vote for a third-party candidate

Stephen Stone, 39
Human resources manager. Brooklyn, New York
Independent
Now: Not as hopeless, but still demoralized. Likely to vote for Jill Stein

In June, Stone began by saying the election is hard to put into just a few words. But “I feel despondent,” he told us. “I feel there is no good choice.” He voted for Biden in 2020 to block Trump, but now feels that Biden has alienated too many voters, including Black voters and those following the war in Gaza. He was considering a write-in candidate, or Green Party candidate Jill Stein.

Now, his feelings about the election have become less dark. “I still feel demoralized,” he wrote, but “not as hopeless, because I think the country may elect Kamala Harris, which would give us some more time to organize; delay some of the most overt elements of fascism.” He is sticking with Stein as his candidate, though he longs for a “viable left wing party.”

This is just a sample of the changes happening for voters.

Overall, as above, we have heard of far more shift among voters who were left-leaning or profoundly anti-Trump. That group is quickly feeling less disillusioned and, to use Stephen Stone’s word, despondent, about the election. And some, like Ana Fernandez, are now truly excited.

For those with more conservative leanings, we’ve also seen a slight lightening of the mood. For the most part, they are not yet moving to Harris. But they are also giving her a chance.

Most telling to us is that we only found one person — a teacher in Pennsylvania — who became more inclined to support Trump in the last month. The assassination attempt humanized Trump for that person, and they hoped he would give a unifying convention speech.

But when Trump’s address rambled into 90 minutes , full of more barbed words, this voter again shifted back to undecided. And they, too, are waiting to see if Harris gives them a reason to vote for her.