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In a special series leading up to Election Day, “The Daily” will explore what a second Trump presidency would look like, and what it could mean for American democracy.

Since he began his latest campaign, former President Donald J. Trump’s message has changed, becoming darker, angrier and more focused on those out to get him than it ever was before.

Charles Homans, who covers national politics for The Times, has been studying the evolution of Mr. Trump’s message, and what exactly it means to his supporters and for the country.

Guest: Charles Homans, who covers national politics for The New York Times.

As the Republican National Convention entered its second day, former President Donald J. Trump and his allies absorbed the stunning new reality that the most formidable legal case against him had been thrown out by a federal judge, who ruled that the appointment of the special counsel who brought the case, Jack Smith, had violated the Constitution.

Alan Feuer, who has been covering the classified documents case for The Times, explains what it means that the case could now be dead.

On the first day of the Republican National Convention, Donald J. Trump chose his running mate: Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio.
We watched the process unfold in real time in Milwaukee. Michael C. Bender, who covers Mr. Trump and his movement for The Times, takes us through the day.

Today’s episode sets out what we know about the attempted assassination of former President Donald J. Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday evening.

Doug Mills, a photographer for The Times, recounts what it was like to witness the shooting, and Glenn Thrush, who covers gun violence for The Times, discusses the state of the investigation into the man who did it.

Cindy Elgan glanced into the lobby of her office and saw a sheriff’s deputy waiting at the front counter. “Let’s start a video recording, just in case this goes sideways,” Elgan, 65, told one of her employees in the Esmeralda County clerk’s office. She had come to expect skepticism, conspiracy theories and even threats related to her job as an election administrator. She grabbed her annotated booklet of Nevada state laws, said a prayer for patience and walked into the lobby to confront the latest challenge to America’s electoral process.

The deputy was standing alongside a woman that Elgan recognized as Mary Jane Zakas, 77, a longtime elementary schoolteacher and a leader in the local Republican Party. She often asked for a sheriff’s deputy to accompany her to the election’s office, in case her meetings became contentious.

“I hope you’re having a blessed morning,” Zakas said. “Unfortunately, a lot of people are still very concerned about the security of their votes. They’ve lost all trust in the system.”

After the 2020 election, former President Donald J. Trump’s denials and accusations of voter fraud spread outward from the White House to even the country’s most remote places, like Esmeralda County. Elgan knew most of the 620 voters in the town. Still, they accused her of being paid off and skimming votes away from Trump. And even though their allegations came with no evidence, they wanted her recalled from office before the next presidential election in November.

The author of “Bowling Alone” warned us about social isolation and its effect on democracy a quarter century ago. Things have only gotten worse.