Trump and Harris debate: what the US presidential candidates will talk about, when and how they will meet

Former U.S. President Donald Trump and current U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris - will hold a televised debate after the official nomination of their candidacies for the highest office of the state from the Republican and Democratic parties. UNN tells when the politicians will meet and how the debate will take place. 

The debate, organized by ABC, will be held in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) and will last 90 minutes. The meeting will be broadcast by all major TV channels in the country. The debate will start at 21:00 U.S. East Coast time (4:00 Kiev time on September 11). The meeting will include two commercial breaks. The hosts will be ABC journalists David Muir and Lindsey Davis.

About candidates and level of support 

Donald Trump was the 45th president of the United States. In 2016, he surpassed Democratic Party rival Hillary Clinton. He held office from January 20, 2017 to January 20, 2021. He left office after losing to Democratic candidate Joe Biden. 

The Republican Party nominated Trump as its presidential candidate at the National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on July 15.

Shortly before the official nomination, the former president survived an assassination attempt. On July 13, during a campaign rally in Butler (Pennsylvania), 20-year-old American Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire. Trump was lightly wounded - his ear was nicked. One of Trump's supporters died. 

Trump is 78 years old and if he wins the election he will become the oldest president at the time of inauguration in U.S. history.

Harris entered the presidential race as a candidate for the nation's highest office after incumbent U.S. President Joe Biden withdrew from the July 21 election. She became the first black woman to run for the U.S. presidency. She is 59 years old and is the current vice president. She previously served as attorney general of California and was later a senator from that state. 

In an online vote conducted by the Democratic Party in August, 99% of party delegates supported her candidacy. On August 21, she was symbolically nominated as the Democratic presidential candidate at the National Convention in Chicago, Illinois.

Although at one point after Harris' nomination, she was slightly ahead of Trump in terms of support, the candidates' ratings leveled off on the eve of the debate. According to a recent survey by The New York Times and the Siena College Research Institute, 48% of voters are willing to support Trump, while 47% of respondents are willing to support Harris. Although Harris is ahead of his rival in three key states - Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. In the remaining of the seven key states - the candidates have so far garnered the same number of votes. 

For Harris, the debate could be decisive, because according to the results of the above-mentioned poll, 28% of respondents said they hope to learn more about her through the debate, while only 9% of respondents expressed such an opinion about Trump. 

How the debate will go 

The candidates had not previously met or even communicated by phone. However, they exchanged invectives against each other in absentia. 

Trump, who is known for his egregiousness, has made several unflattering remarks about Harris's intellectual abilities. 

“She has no idea what the hell she's doing,” Trump once said. 

Trump also recently said on Fox News that he would allow Biden to speak at their June debate, adding, “I'll let her speak. There are those who say Biden is smarter than her. If that's the case, we have a problem.

Harris was not in debt. 

At the Democratic Party's national convention last month, when she accepted the party's nomination for president, Harris said: “In many ways, Donald Trump is not a serious person.

Harris added: “But the consequences of Donald Trump returning to the White House are very serious”. The Democratic candidate believes that if he wins, Trump will use his power for personal gain rather than for the good of the United States. 

The rules for the debate, which will last 90 minutes, will be the same as they were during the June interaction between Trump and Biden. Each candidate's microphone will be turned off while his or her opponent speaks. Each candidate will take turns speaking, with two minutes for the moderators to respond, two minutes to rebut their opponent's answers and another minute for additional remarks and clarifications. At the end, each candidate will have two minutes for closing remarks. 

Candidates will not have prepared talking points with them, but will be given notebooks and pens. During the commercial breaks, they are not allowed to communicate among themselves or with representatives of their headquarters. There will be no spectators in the studio. 

During the organization of the meeting, the candidates' headquarters expressed different opinions on the robotic microphones - Harris' representatives insisted that the microphones remain on at all times, while Trump's side insisted that the microphone of one of the candidates should be turned off during the opponent's speech. Harris's staff explained her position on this matter by the “prosecutorial” style of conducting the vice-presidential debate. It is also believed that Harris fears that Trump may simply outshout her even with the microphone turned off. 

The first debate between Trump and Harris could also be the final debate in this election race. The candidates have not yet reached a consensus on dates for other meetings. 

On October 1, the vice-presidential candidates - Republican Senator James D. Vance of Ohio and Democrat Governor Timothy Walz of Minnesota - will meet. The debate will be organized by the CBS television network.

What candidates offer and what is expected of them 

Abortion rights, immigration to the United States via Mexico, crime rates in the United States, and personal reputation are among the issuesthat the ABC hosts are likely to raise.  

Trump is expected to focus on the high inflation during Biden's presidency and concerns over the U.S.-Mexico border. He will also link Harris to all the failures of the incumbent's administration. The Republican nominee is also likely to focus on Harris' performance as California prosecutor, as there have been previous claims from his side that Harris has shown weakness in dealing with violent crime. At the same time, it is expected that Trump will not comment on Harris' gender, intelligence and race. According to analysts, such comments could be risky for Trump. 

Harris, on the other hand, is expected to focus on her economic agenda and her support for abortion rights. The weakness for Harris may be her simultaneous attempt to distance herself from Biden and express her commitment to the current White House course. 

There is a high probability that the Ukrainian issue will also be touched upon during the debate - in general, the topic of foreign policy is high on the agenda. Regarding Ukraine, Harris previously said she would continue to support Ukraine in the war, while Trump, on the contrary, said he would end the war before assuming the presidency.  

It should be noted that Trump does not do traditional preparation with mock debates. His campaign claims that he preparesby talking to voters during rallies and giving interviews. However, Trump has held policy sessions with advisors, including former Democratic Representative Tulsi Gabbard, who squared off with Harris during a debate in the 2020 Democratic primary; Republican Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida; immigration adviser Stephen Miller; and strategist Jason Miller.

Harris hosted the mock debate. The sessions were moderated by Karen Dunn, a Washington attorney who has organized debate preparations for Democratic candidates since 2008, and Rohini Kosoglou, a longtime adviser to Harris. Philippe Reines, a former aide to Hillary Clinton, played the role of Trump in the mock debate.

Trump has more experience in debates on US national television: in 2016, he broke through a large number of Republicans and secured the party's nomination. He was then helped by his debate performances, which were watched by tens of millions of Americans.  However, Harris also has experience - as a politician and as a former prosecutor, she has participated in these kinds of debates more than once.