Countdown to one of the most important moments in the US election campaign: Almost two months before the presidential election, the two candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump will compete against each other on Tuesday evening (local time) in their first and probably only TV duel. The 90-minute debate will be hosted by ABC in Philadelphia and will begin at 9:00 p.m. (local time, Wednesday, 3:00 a.m. CEST).
Great importance is attached to the speech battle as the candidates are neck and neck in the polls. It is perhaps the best opportunity for Harris to sharpen her profile in the direct confrontation with Trump and to convey to US voters what she stands for. A recent survey published by the New York Times says that 28 percent of voters Voters do not have a clear picture of the Democratic candidate, while only nine percent said this about the Republican Trump.
The Democratic vice president arrived in Philadelphia on Monday, and Trump was expected in the East Coast metropolis a few hours before the debate began. In the past few days, the 59-year-old had been training with her team in Pittsburgh, while the 78-year-old right-wing populist reportedly did not particularly prepare for the debate.
Trump adviser Jason Miller said it would be “impossible” to prepare for a debate with Trump. He put his boss on a par with one of the greatest athletes in US history: “Imagine a boxer who wants to prepare for a fight against Muhammad Ali.”
Harris said in a radio interview that Trump knows “there is no lower limit” to the level. It is clear to her that he will also twist the truth in the TV duel and act with lies. “We should be prepared that he will probably tell a lot of untruths,” she said.
Important topics in the debate are likely to be economic and migration policy, but the abortion issue and foreign policy are also likely to be discussed, as well as the criminal proceedings pending against Trump for election manipulation. The two candidates have never met in person. For Harris it is the first TV duel, for Trump, who is running for the third time in a presidential election, the seventh.
There is a lot at stake; some TV duels have decided the US election. In the case of outgoing incumbent Joe Biden, his failure in the duel with Trump on June 27th meant the end of his plan to move into the White House for another four years despite his old age.
The rules for the TV battle are meticulously defined. The microphone will be muted for the candidate whose turn it is. The duel starts immediately without opening statements, but there will be closing statements for which the candidates have two minutes each.
The candidate has two minutes to answer, and two minutes are then given for a reply. The opponents each stand behind a podium and are only given a pen, a writing pad and a bottle of water.
There will be no spectators in the room; Two commercial breaks are planned, during which employees from the campaign teams are not allowed to speak to the candidates.
The Trump-Biden duel was watched by 51.3 million viewers in the USA, and significantly more viewers are expected for the spectacle on Tuesday evening. The venue, Philadelphia, is in the state of Pennsylvania, which is one of the so-called swing states. In these states, the result of the presidential election on November 5th is in the balance, which is why they are particularly hotly contested.
