Anthony Zuercher
North America correspondent

The biggest message from Kamala Harris' speech may have been the venue – the same place where Donald Trump held his rally on January 6, 2021, shortly before his supporters attacked the US Capitol.

The images from Tuesday night, in contrast to that cold winter day nearly four years ago, provided the subtext for the entire speech and the core form that Harris was able to assign to her vision of a future of a different kind that she had envisioned.

It was essentially a stripped-down version of her speech at the Democratic National Convention in late August, complete with biographical details, policy proposals and repeated jabs at her opponent.

At that point, Democrats were riding high at their August convention and excited about their new candidate after weeks of dejection and infighting led to Biden deciding to abandon his re-election bid.

Since then, Harris' campaign has seen ups and downs and now faces a goal that could be a photofinish in next week's election.

In her speech, she acknowledged that many undecided American voters are “still getting to know her” after her truncated presidential campaign – which may be a concern for Democrats as Election Day approaches.

Standard speeches, however, are a strength of Harris. And Tuesday night's address likely hit on the key points her campaign wants to highlight in these final days.