Kamala Harris’ first interview since becoming the Democratic presidential nominee was a chance to introduce herself — and her campaign’s message — to Americans who say they don’t yet know her and what she stands for.

The vice president defended her record in the White House and answered questions about a series of policy changes since she first ran for the top job in 2019 during Thursday’s CNN interview.

Ms. Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, who joined her for the interview, have enjoyed a flurry of enthusiasm from Democrats in recent weeks, but the campaign knows they must convince undecided voters to win the November election.

Young men make up a significant portion of the voters to be persuaded, a group that Republican Donald Trump has aggressively targeted with a series of recent media appearances on podcasts whose audiences are predominantly young and male.

What did three of them think of the first interview with Ms Harris, given the battle for their votes?

ROHAN VIJAYAN, 29, Pennsylvania

This software developer supported the Democrats in the last two elections, but has still not decided whether to run in 2024.

Harris can talk coherently, which I think is just an improvement over the previous two candidates, both Trump and Biden. I think she’s relatively articulate in the way she talks. But in terms of policy, I think this is the first time I’ve heard any actual elements of substantive policy from her.

The interview didn’t do much to assuage my concerns – what she would actually want to do and whether she could implement it effectively. You’ve been a VP for a few years, why haven’t you tried this sort of thing before?

The interview didn’t change my opinion on how to vote. Honestly, I want to see her challenged in a press conference or of course the debate that’s coming up. I think I need to see her in that setting, without an autocue or rehearsed answers. I think the interview was a little too spoiled. I want to see her pressured. I don’t think she’s done that well as a VP in those situations in the past.

Walz came across as very engaging. I think he helps to create a sense of that good old American, down-to-earth vibe that I think they were particularly missing. I like his addition to the ticket.

JEREMY PETERSEN, 26, Utah

Jeremy, a teacher who voted Green in 2020, felt Harris’ message was not compelling enough.

I think they’ve been very vague. I can see to some extent why from their perspective it’s more about, “Let’s make this about Donald Trump,” than it is about policy. But that doesn’t get you very far.

I was frustrated because she used the phrase, “My values ​​haven’t changed, but my policies have.” If you were consistent in your values ​​and wanted clean energy, you would still support a ban on fracking.

When they were talking about Israel and Gaza, she said we were going to maintain the Biden administration’s policies. It’s a policy that, at least in my opinion, has failed both Jews and Palestinians. People on both sides don’t seem any closer to a deal, and people on both sides continue to suffer. So to say we’re going to maintain a policy that hasn’t gotten anywhere in almost a year almost feels like she’s just trying not to lose voters instead of saying she’s going to work toward a solution.

I haven’t heard enough to convince me. Because it feels like on the one hand she’s saying we’re going to be different than Biden, but on the other hand it’s like it’s just going to be the same with a new face.

EDWARD GREENE, 22, New Hampshire

As a student who didn’t vote last time, he feels lost since his favorite candidate, Robert Kennedy Jr., supported Trump.

I wasn’t really impressed, to be honest. I don’t think the interview revealed much. I also understand that that’s a kind of politics, and that’s true of any campaign, that the more specific they get, the easier it is to campaign against them.

I appreciated when Harris specifically talked about her planned economic reform measures and this opportunity economy that she was talking about, but I don’t think it was particularly compelling or the questions were particularly challenging.

I’m not sure there’s anything in there that would convince me to vote for the Harris-Walz campaign. One of the big reasons people were excited about Harris taking over the ticket — after Biden was so bad in live, unscheduled settings — was that she was young and could bring more energy to the Democratic campaign. But given the lack of live interviews and question-answering thus far, I still have concerns about their competence.