DNC delegates cheer for Harris. It also looks beyond convention with caution.

Democrats are excited about Kamala Harris. Like, put-her-face-on-a-t-shirt-and-her-name-on-them-personalized-Chucks excited.

But as thousands of delegates prepare to descend on Chicago for next week’s Democratic National Convention, their enthusiasm for the vice president and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, is already being tempered by the recognition that the landscape that follows the convention could just as much. easily move against them. Their supreme optimism, according to interviews with more than three dozen delegates, is tinged with caution.

The war in Gaza remains unresolved, as does unrest at home — and there are fears among some Democrats that protests expected at their convention could erupt again on college campuses as students return for the fall semester.

Inflation is falling, but the labor market is cooling. The recent stock market crash — and recovery — reminded Democrats how quickly public perceptions of the economy can change. Immigration remains a weakness for Democrats. And then there’s former President Donald Trump, who has struggled to find his feet against a new challenger but whose approval ratings, though lower than Harris’, have risen in recent weeks. His allies are now launching a barrage of ads against Harris.

“There’s this sense that Democrats still haven’t done enough or connected enough with voters in the middle. And I think that anger is still there and can be kind of easily captured by Donald Trump ‘let’s break the whole system because it’s not working for you,'” said Jamie Eldridge, a progressive Massachusetts state senator and delegate, who had asked President Joe Biden to step down from the top of the ticket in July. “I’m still seriously concerned that this is such a close election.”

Some delegates warned that the party cannot let the sugar high of a fundraiser and poll surge for Harris’ campaign wear off once the convention is in the rearview mirror.

“We can’t be lazy and assume we’re going to have a big party and elect Democrats,” said New York Assemblywoman Grace Lee.

Harris and Walz acknowledged the challenges ahead in a contest that remains extremely close in the polls and is still likely to be decided on the margins.

“I’m not naive. It will be hard. This is a tough race,” Walz said at a recent fundraiser in Boston. “But don’t underestimate the sense of joy that starts to emanate from it.”

And Democrats i am happy It’s a dramatic change in tone from the despair that gripped the party and its delegates at the convention just a month ago, when Biden’s candidacy ended after a disastrous debate.

Now, they head to Chicago for the party’s biggest gathering in eight years — one that delegates in interviews with POLITICO almost universally predicted would be the most united and upbeat national confab of Democrats since Barack Obama’s first inauguration in 2008. in no small part due to its similar historical nature: Harris is the first black woman and the first South Asian woman to win a major party nomination. (Harris and Walz have already been certified as the Democratic nominees for president and vice president, though a ceremonial roll call is planned.)

It’s also an organic offshoot of the happy warrior messages from Harris and, to an even greater extent, Walz.

“What they’ve taught me over the last few months is that Democrats have had no problem with messaging. We had a problem with the messaging,” said David Crowley, Wisconsin delegate and Milwaukee County Executive.

The euphoria, delegates said, also represents a significant shift from the mood among Democrats heading into the party’s last two conventions, both of which came after contentious primaries that fractured the party — and one of which was heavily changed by the pandemic.

“2016 was a sense of coming out of this awkward and really tough primary, it was kind of a shotgun marriage. 2020 — it was in the middle of the pandemic, everyone was at home, there was a missing sense of connectedness,” said Brandon Zavala, California delegate and veteran Los Angeles County Democratic strategist who co-chairs the state Democratic organizing committee.

Now, he said, “it’s a chance to celebrate.”

Florida delegate and DNC member Samantha Hope Herring said her daughter, who is also a delegate, designed “Coconut Caucus” badges for the Florida delegation to wear during the convention — a reference to Harris’ viral clip ” coconut tree” which became a calling. her campaign book. Massachusetts delegates, meanwhile, will have custom Harris-themed Converse (the sneaker brand is based in the state). And a delegate from Harris County, Texas, Debby Kerner, plans to wear a T-shirt with the slogan “This is Harris County” next to a picture of the vice president and the Texas outline.

But the joy of the delegates will also be marked by protests. Tens of thousands of demonstrators are expected to flood the streets of Chicago, where at least six protest marches and rallies are planned. The coalition of nearly 200 groups plans to protest a number of issues, particularly the pro-Palestinian effort.

And inside the United Center will be about 30 “uncommitted” delegates — the result of protest votes during the primaries over Biden’s support for Israel and his administration’s continued support of the country in the ongoing war in Gaza. Those delegates could now prove a headache for Harris as they urge her to support the arms embargo on Israel.

Asma Mohammed, one of 11 “uncommitted” delegates Minnesota is sending to the convention, said her mission is to convince other delegates that a policy change from Harris on the Israel-Hamas war is needed to win the so-called Blue Wall states. Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.

“We can’t win against Trump if we don’t have all the unengaged voters,” Mohammed said. “We’re going to have a party that’s divided if we don’t address this issue head on.”

Their calls will be amplified by token “ceasefire delegates” — convention attendees who have signed a petition calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and an end to ammunition for Israel. That includes David Seaton, a delegate from Massachusetts who supports Harris and praised her more “empathetic” approach to the situation — she met briefly with members of the layoff movement before a rally in Michigan earlier this month and called for a ceasefire and a two-state solution — but remains concerned that he will not be able to win over younger voters who support the Palestinian movement.

And Pat Fahy, an alternate delegate from New York attending the convention and a Democratic candidate for the state Senate, worries that further escalation in the Middle East could fuel another round of campus demonstrations this fall — developments that could undermine Harris campaign.

“We are coming to the anniversary of October 7. I think the Middle East is still a concern,” she said.

While many delegates polled by POLITICO said they weren’t worried about the disruptions at and around the convention, some warned they could be harmful to both Harris and their cause.

“If anybody’s trying to cause any division, you’re just trying to play into Donald Trump’s hands,” said Jim Demers, a New Hampshire delegate and longtime Democratic strategist in the state.

Beyond the conflict in the Middle East, delegates expressed a desire for Harris to develop his policy platform — particularly on the economy and border security, two issues that Trump is pushing for Democrats. Harris took a stab at the former on Friday, unveiling a sweeping proposal that would crack down on inflation and lower health care costs while expanding affordable housing and child tax credits — goals that will largely depend on who controls Congress. Her plan, an extension of Biden’s policies, quickly won praise from some delegates. But concerns remain about her ability to sell both her plans and the administration’s economic gains, especially if the market takes another downward turn.

In Texas, Mary Alice Palacios, a delegate from the state’s Hidalgo County — a border county that Biden carried by 17 percentage points four years ago — said she wanted Harris to lean toward “tougher punishment for people who bring illegal drugs across our border.”

And in New York, Linda Rosenthal, a delegate and state Assembly member from Manhattan, said there was lingering anxiety about a post-convention surprise in October, on par with FBI Director James Comey reopening an investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of email during Secretary of State in 2016. election.

“Absolutely the vibes have changed,” she said. “I get stopped on the street by random people and say it’s so interesting. People are so excited. I am beyond happy. It talks about how everybody’s been down in the pits before.”

Still, Rosenthal said, “When you look at the headlines that say the FBI is investigating hacking — I think after Chicago people will start to worry about that kind of thing.”

Shia Kapos and Jeff Coltin contributed to this report.