USA Election campaign spectacle: TV duel between Harris and Trump

Showdown in Philadelphia: On Wednesday night (03:00 CEST), US presidential candidates Kamala Harris (Democrat) and Donald Trump (Republican) will face each other for the first time in a televised duel.

The exchange of blows between the incumbent Vice President and the former President is eagerly awaited and is seen as the highlight of the remaining two months until the US presidential election on November 5. The debate will be hosted by ABC News.

The duel will be a test for Harris in particular. The 59-year-old only replaced US President Joe Biden as the Democratic candidate a few weeks ago and tends to find it difficult to appear without a script. Trump, on the other hand, has been there for his party right from the start - this is his third race for the White House for the Republicans. The 78-year-old emerged as the clear winner of the last TV duel at the end of June. At that time, he was still competing against Biden, who withdrew from the race for the presidency after his disastrous performance and left the field to Harris.

Harris and Trump are roughly tied in the polls. Both now want to win over undecided voters in particular. The clash between Trump and Biden in June was watched by around 51 million of the 330 million inhabitants of the USA.

What are the rules?

The duel will be moderated by ABC News journalists David Muir and Linsey Davis. It will be broadcast from a studio without an audience in Philadelphia, the largest city in the politically contested state of Pennsylvania. The debate will last 90 minutes, with two commercial breaks planned. During the debate, the microphone of the presidential candidate who is not speaking will remain muted.

Harris and Trump must speak freely: "Props or pre-written notes are not allowed on stage," ABC News reported. Harris and Trump will be given a pen, a pad of paper and a bottle of water. There will be no opening statements; the candidates' closing statements will last two minutes. The candidates fought bitterly in advance over individual rules and the timing of the debate.

How can you watch from Germany?

Das Erste and Phoenix as well as the TV channels Welt TV, RTL and ntv will broadcast the debate live in Germany on Wednesday night from around 02:45 CEST. Live streams will also be available on the internet, for example on ZDFheute.de. ABC News itself will also be streaming the debate live on its website. However, this can only be accessed from Germany with a VPN connection.

How did Harris and Trump prepare?

Harris traveled to Pennsylvania on Thursday to prepare for the duel. US media reported, citing people close to her, that the Democrat was preparing for the duel with simulations - with one person playing the role of Trump.

Trump had already said before the first TV debate that he did not need much training - he had basically spent his "whole life" preparing for the duel and debating was "mainly a question of attitude" anyway. He made similar comments last week. US media reported, citing people close to him, that Trump was talking to his advisors, voters and journalists in preparation.

What are the issues?

According to polls, the economy is the most important issue for voters and is likely to play a major role in the debate. Migration, healthcare and women's rights are also important in the election campaign. Foreign policy is also unlikely to be neglected in the debate.

What are the candidates' strengths and weaknesses?

In a recent survey, 28% of respondents said they did not know enough about Harris - this figure was 9% for Trump. While most people in the US know what to expect from the Republican, Harris and her positions are unknown to far more people. This means she has to score points in the debate in terms of content and present her political goals.

Trump, on the other hand, has frightened off some voters in the past because he came across as aggressive in such debates and constantly interrupted them. At least the latter is not possible this time due to the muted microphones. Harris sees this as a disadvantage - she believes that Trump cannot behave in a presidential manner for 90 minutes. Her campaign team's logic is that permanently switched on microphones would therefore harm him. The microphones were also muted during the debate against Biden in June - the Republican actually appeared less angry as a result.

Who will accompany Harris and Trump?

According to the White House, Harris will be accompanied by her husband Doug Emhoff, who is supporting her in public.

It remains to be seen whether Trump will be accompanied by his wife Melania at the debate. The former First Lady has hardly appeared in public since leaving the White House and has so far played a very reserved role in her husband's election campaign. She made a rare appearance at the Republican Party convention in Milwaukee in mid-July - but she did not give a speech and only appeared on the last evening.

Will there be another round?

Another TV debate is planned between the vice candidates Tim Walz (Democrats) and J.D. Vance (Republicans) on October 1. It will be hosted by CBS News. It remains to be seen if and when there will be a second TV debate between Harris and Trump - or if they will have the only opportunity to duel on stage on Wednesday night.

SDA