With the election less than two months away, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are gearing up for their first presidential debate. This high-stakes event is crucial as both candidates seek to make a strong impact on voters and strengthen their positions in the race.
Initially, Trump was slated to debate President Joe Biden at Tuesday’s event. However, due to Biden’s underwhelming performance in the initial debate in June and growing concerns about his age, he has withdrawn from the race, setting the stage for a critical showdown between Harris and Trump.
Recent national polling averages from Real Clear Politics show a notable shift: Democrats have moved from trailing Trump by 3.1 percentage points to leading by 1.8 points since Harris joined the race—an improvement of nearly five points in just over a month.
For those interested in watching the debate, here are the details:
When Is the Debate?
The debate will take place at 9 p.m. ET for 90 minutes, hosted at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. The NCC is a nonprofit that houses a museum dedicated to the U.S. Constitution and has previously hosted significant political events, including a Democratic presidential primary debate in 2008 and two ABC News town halls before the 2020 election.
How to Watch
ABC’s World News Tonight anchor David Muir and ABC News Live Prime host Linsey Davis will moderate the debate. It will be broadcast on ABC, in partnership with its local affiliate, WPVI-TV/6ABC, and will also be available for streaming on ABC News Live, Disney+, and Hulu.
What’s Next?
Currently, no further presidential debates are scheduled, making Tuesday’s debate between Trump and Harris potentially the only opportunity for voters to see them debate before Election Day. Meanwhile, the vice presidential candidates—Minnesota Democratic Governor Tim Walz and Ohio Republican Senator JD Vance—are set to debate on October 1, hosted by CBS News.
