New London ― In the spring, when Mara Suttmann-Lea and Eric Fleury talked presidential politics with their Connecticut College students, the discussion was sometimes less than uplifting.

At the time, a Trump-Biden rematch seemed unavoidable.

“The tenor of the class was very dark,” Suttmann-Lea, an associate professor of government, said. “There were some weeks when I brought in coffee and doughnuts because they needed a pick-me-up.”

She said her “beautifully idealistic” students “were very disenchanted with their options.”

For Fleury, an associate professor of government and international relations, one student in particular stood out. The student had been thoroughly demoralized during the spring semester, and, in late June, emailed Fleury after the Trump-Biden debate.

“I can’t do this anymore,” he wrote.

In a Zoom call, Suttmann-Lea and Fleury reflected on how much the political landscape has changed since the academic year ended. They agreed President Joe Biden’s July 21 suspension of his campaign and the subsequent emergence of the Kamala Harris-Tim Walz Democratic ticket are apt to energize young voters ― “Gen Zers” ― like few events in recent election history.

“Given what I’ve observed over the last couple of weeks and what I know about the nature of campaigns and momentum, this is a paradigm-shifting moment,” Suttmann-Lee said. “Harris and now Walz absolutely have a meaningful path to victory ― probably multiple paths to victory.”

Suttman-Lea and Fleury spoke Wednesday, the day after Vice President Harris announced Walz, the Minnesota governor, was her choice to join her on the campaign trail. On Tuesday night, they appeared together in Philadelphia.

“Walz is electrifying the ticket in very unexpected ways, so it’s just a question of when this momentum dips, because it will, it ebbs and flows,” Suttman-Lea said. “I think the Republicans are scrambling, and they don’t know how to navigate this major, major shift in the campaign.”

Fleury said the choice of Walz, an unconventional one in some ways, almost immediately made sense.

“He really adds a dimension,” Fleury said. “We’ve seen in an extremely short time the Harris campaign is all about engagement, messaging, motivation and excitement, and Walz has done an unbelievably good job.”

Many expected Harris to name Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro as her running mate, in part because of his popularity in his home state, which political analysts believe could be crucial in determining the election’s outcome.

Suttmann-Lea said it’s not clear the extent to which a vice-presidential candidate can secure votes for a presidential ticket. Republicans, she said, had gathered far more “opposition research” on Shapiro, an outspoken supporter of Israel, than they had on Walz.

“When I saw Shapiro was the likely favorite ― and this is going to sound totally nonscientific ― I said something doesn’t feel right about this,” Suttmann-Lea said. “I actually didn’t think it was going to be Shapiro, so I wasn’t surprised.”

Suttmann-Lee said Harris values relationships and the quality of the connections she has with people. A Midwesterner herself, Suttmann-Lea also said Walz can speak effectively to Midwestern audiences in states like Michigan and Wisconsin as well as to voters in Pennsylvania.

The vibe surrounding the Harris-Walz ticket has contrasted sharply with that associated with Sen. JD Vance, former President Donald Trump’s running mate.

“Given what’s happened over the last couple of weeks with the Harris campaign and her picking of Walz, I’ve got to say the Vance choice is not helpful (to the Republican ticket),” Suttmann-Lea said. “Especially by comparison.”

“In terms of messaging, on the Harris/Walz side you have authenticity, you have joy,” she said. “You have a candidate for vice president who has spent his life in roles where he is serving others. He’s consistent and true to who he is, and that’s something, especially with younger voters ― Gen Z, I see this in my classroom ― they value authenticity.”

Fleury said he regards Vance as an ideologue.

“He’s a Project 2025 made into a human being,” he said, referencing a collection of conservative policy proposals. “Trump is a showman and a media darling. My theory is that Trump picked Vance because Vance was able to charm the mainstream media well enough to turn himself into a celebrity. That’s the only thing Trump values.”

Fleury said Vance wants to implement a hard right agenda that is destined to clash with Trump’s realization that bans on abortion and in vitro fertilization are deeply unpopular. Harris and Walz will be able to exploit their disconnect, he said.

Suttmann-Lea said the Trump campaign seemed to have been caught off guard by Biden’s withdrawal of his candidacy, which rendered age-based attacks obsolete. Fleury said the Democrats don’t seem inclined to make as much out of Trump’s supposed cognitive decline as they could.

“They’re framing him as weird rather than old,” he said.

They agreed the election’s margin will be exceedingly narrow.

“I think it will be a high-turnout election, meaning it will be very close,” Suttmann-Lea said.

“Momentum matters,” added Fleury.

b.hallenbeck@theday.com