Pardon my departure from the usual provinces of Vermont politics, but there’s something that must be said and I haven’t heard it anywhere else.

Kamala Harris is on one hell of a run.

I can’t think of a political figure in my lifetime who’s accomplished anything close to what she’s done in the brief period of time since President Biden ended his bid for a second term. I really don’t think I’m exaggerating about this. Compared to the normal, glacial pace of presidential campaigns, the Harris effort is an eyeblink.

Most recently, there was the debate. I believe MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell called it the strongest performance in presidential debate history, full stop. If it wasn’t, it was damn close. Harris got her talking points across, she subtly needled Donald Trump into unhinged rants (transgender surgery on immigrants in prison?????), and she handled his obnoxious behavior with good humor. It was like Bugs Bunny facing Yosemite Sam. She made it look effortless. Or like a woman who’s spent her career having to deal with powerful men.

It’s just the latest chapter in a campaign that formally began only a month and a half ago when Biden dropped out on July 21. This won’t mean much to anyone besides me, but I tested positive for Covid in early August and was sick for a month. My illness lasted almost as long as the entire Harris campaign to date. That’s simply remarkable.

The tale began with Biden’s poor debate performance in late June. Afterward, a growing chorus of politicians and pundits called on him to step aside. As the chorus got louder, there was speculation about what might happen after Biden. The party could have gone in any or all of a thousand directions, as it is wont to do when given half a chance. There were calls from many, including our own Sen. Peter Welch, for some kind of mini-primary process that promised to turn into a back-alley death brawl that would have ensured Trump’s victory.

Instead, when Biden finally withdrew he endorsed Harris, and that quieted the speculation. Still, Harris’ ascension wasn’t a sure thing, and I assume that before and after July 21 she was using all her political skills to secure her position. She faced a lot of doubts fueled by her gender, ethnicity, and all that California baggage, not to mention her early flameout in the 2020 presidential campaign. Despite all of that, by the day after Biden’s withdrawal, she had amassed enough delegates to ensure her nomination.

Books will be written about what went on behind the scenes as the party coalesced around Harris. It happened so suddenly, and in spite of the Democrats’ predilection toward chaos. But she did it. And, as with the debate, she did it with no visible effort.

She went on to generate a level of enthusiasm unseen in the party since, I don’t know, John F. Kennedy? Maybe even the FDR of 1936 and beyond? (Kennedy was no sure thing in the 1960 primary. The shiny Camelot image is partly, perhaps largely, retrospective in nature, the aura that comes only with absence from the rough-and-tumble.) Seemingly overnight, Harris went from the odd mix of fame and obscurity that characterizes the vice presidency to the beloved leader of a movement. Her soaring popularity was reflected in her massive fundraising haul and her rally crowds.

While Democratic nominees tend to play it safe when picking a running mate, Harris made an inspired choice in Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a rare politician who believably speaks the language of real people. There’s a level of authenticity that you just don’t see in politics. (I’ve heard that Walz is the first member of a Democratic ticket since 1964 who doesn’t have a law degree. Not confirmed, but it tracks.) He provides Midwestern grounding to a mixed-race candidate from the Left Coast. But most importantly, he has a unique ability to frame progressive policy in down-to-earth terms. He’s convincing in Carhartts and a camo hat. Extra bonus: Somehow this 60-year-old white guy from Minnesota is a natural on social media.

Walz’ tater tot-fed, State Fair-goin’ persona fed directly into the ticket’s game plan for the convention. Speaker after speaker tied Democratic policies to the all-American values of patriotism, freedom, small-town values, even football — territory too often ceded to the Republicans without a fight.

The party returning to Chicago called up echoes of the disastrous 1968 convention. There was even an active protest movement that promised to cause disruption or at least embarrassment. In the end, it fizzled.

Harris and Walz have gone from strength to strength ever since. The money keeps rolling in. Party members and left-leaning voters are energized and engaged.

I’ll say it again, none of this was inevitable. Most of it was against the odds and against the Democrats’ habit of bungling opportunity by playing it safe. All of a sudden, since Harris became its leader, the party has transformed from a smoky rustbucket to a well-oiled machine firing on all cylinders.

I know it ain’t all rainbows and unicorns. The government’s support for Israel’s aggression in Gaza is a stain on our politics. The Biden administration has failed to budge the Israeli government while continuing to arm its military. Elsewhere, Harris is spending a lot of time tacking to the center. She’s definitely to my right on the political spectrum. But I’m used to that, and I understand the need to focus on the small sliver of real undecideds. In a mad rush of a campaign, that’s where the effort needs to go. Anything is better than Trump.

There’s a long way till Election Day and nothing is etched in stone. If Harris doesn’t close the deal, she’ll become yet another exhibit in the party’s distinguished (and crowded) Hall of Losers. But to judge by her brief but spectacular track record, I expect that she will pull it off.