Clinton’s campaign witnesses the first lady as a unifying figure who reinforced the role of the President. She addressed an audience of 6,000 packed into the basketball arena at North Carolina State University last week, "I don't have to be here”. She had been praising Hillary Clinton and lighting into her opponent for a half-hour at that point, and she had brought the crowd to its feet. "I do this because I truly believe that this election matters. I truly want for our young people a president that they can look up to."

The first lady, who had carefully cultivated an everywoman persona, has been cashing in on her popularity as she travels the country and says what the politicians in her party cannot. If Hillary Clinton has been criticized for dry delivery, Michelle Obama is all emotion and energy.

She tells crowds, to wild applause “a president can't just pop off ". In the past month, the first lady has held five rallies, four of them on college campuses. Her crowds, which skew toward young voters, have often been larger than those attracted to Clinton's solo campaign events, and the enthusiasm in the audiences is high. In Raleigh, students and faculty members lined up before 8 AM to hear her speak at 3:30 PM.

political scientist William A. Galston, a former aide to President Bill Clinton who is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, “she has a kind of informality that comes off as very natural, and in a generation that is searching for authenticity and connection, I think that helps”.

Obama, who will campaign for Clinton again in Concord, New Hampshire, on Thursday, mentioned the policy differences between the candidates briefly. The heart of her message has been aimed at painting Trump as a loose cannon and a poor role model, and Hillary Clinton as hard-working and conscientious.

By Prakriti Neogi