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Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will square off at Tuesday night’s presidential debate in Philadelphia.
After a disastrous performance in the first general election debate of this cycle in June, President Joe Biden ended his reelection bid, upending the campaign in its closing months and kicking off the rapid-fire process that allowed Harris to rise as Democrats’ nominee in his place.
As was the case for the June debate, there will be no audience present.
Pennsylvania is perhaps the nation’s premier swing state, and both candidates have spent significant time campaigning across Pennsylvania. Trump was holding a rally in Butler, in western Pennsylvania, in mid-July when he was nearly assassinated by a gunman perched on a nearby rooftop. Harris chose Philadelphia as the spot where she unveiled Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate in August.
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In 2020, it was Pennsylvania’s electoral votes that put Biden over the top and propelled him into the White House, four years after Trump won the state. Biden’s victory came after more than three days of uncertainty as election officials sorted through a surge of mail-in votes that delayed the processing of some ballots, and the Trump campaign mounted several legal challenges.
An estimated 51.3 million people watched Biden and Trump in June. But that was before many people were truly tuned into the election, and the potential rematch of the 2020 campaign was drawing little enthusiasm.
Tuesday's debate will almost certainly reach more people, whether or not it approaches the record debate audience of 84 million for the first face-off between Hillary Clinton and Trump in 2016.
Here's a look at what to expect:
When is the presidential debate?
The presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump takes place at 8 p.m. CT/9 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Sept. 10, at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia.
The planned debate comes nearly three weeks after the conclusion of the 2024 Democratic National Convention, in which Harris formally accepted the party's nomination after a turbulent month kickstarted by Biden's withdrawal.
How to watch the presidential debate
NBC News will broadcast the full debate live and offering extensive primetime coverage beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt and TODAY co-anchor Savannah Guthrie will anchor a pre-debate primetime special starting at 8 p.m. ET on NBC, followed by a live presentation of the ABC News-hosted debate at 9 p.m. ET. Holt and Guthrie will continue special coverage following the debate.
Viewers can watch the debate live on their local NBC station or via the local NBC station's streaming channel, which is available 24/7 and free of charge across nearly every online video platform, including Peacock, YouTube, Samsung TV Plus and the NBC News app on smartphones and smart TVs.
Will mics be on or off? Full list of debate rules
The parameters now in place for the Sept. 10 debate are essentially the same as they were for the June debate between Trump and President Joe Biden.
According to ABC News, the candidates will stand behind lecterns, will not make opening statements and will not be allowed to bring notes during the 90-minute debate. David Muir and Linsey Davis will moderate the event.
“Moderators will seek to enforce timing agreements and ensure a civilized discussion,” the network noted.
A Harris campaign official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss planning around the debate, said a candidate who repeatedly interrupts will receive a warning from a moderator, and both candidates' microphones may be unmuted if there is significant crosstalk so the audience can understand what's happening.
After a virtual coin flip held Tuesday and won by Trump, the GOP nominee opted to offer the final closing statement, while Harris chose the podium on the right side of viewers’ screens. There will be no audience, written notes or any topics or questions shared with campaigns or candidates in advance, the network said.
Here's the full list of rules:
- The debate will be 90 minutes with two commercial breaks.
- The two seated moderators, David Muir and Linsey Davis, will be the only people asking questions.
- A coin flip was held virtually on Tuesday, Sept. 3, to determine podium placement and order of closing statements; former President Donald Trump won the coin toss and chose to select the order of statements. The former president will offer the last closing statement, and Vice President Harris selected the right podium position on screen (stage left).
- Candidates will be introduced by the moderators.
- The candidates enter upon introduction from opposite sides of the stage; the incumbent party will be introduced first.
- No opening statements; closing statements will be two minutes per candidate.
- Candidates will stand behind podiums for the duration of the debate.
- Props or prewritten notes are not allowed onstage.
- No topics or questions will be shared in advance with campaigns or candidates.
- Candidates will be given a pen, a pad of paper and a bottle of water.
- Candidates will have two-minute answers to questions, two-minute rebuttals, and one extra minute for follow-ups, clarifications, or responses.
- Candidates' microphones will be live only for the candidate whose turn it is to speak and muted when the time belongs to another candidate.
- Candidates will not be permitted to ask questions of each other.
- Campaign staff may not interact with candidates during commercial breaks.
- Moderators will seek to enforce timing agreements and ensure a civilized discussion.
- There will be no audience in the room.
Are other debates planned?
Though the September debate is currently the only debate currently planned between Harris and Trump, Harris' campaign said that a potential October debate was contingent on Trump attending the Sept. 10 debate.
In addition to the planned Harris-Trump debate on Sept. 10, vice presidential candidates Tim Walz and JD Vance also agreed to a debate, scheduled to be hosted by CBS News on Oct. 1.
When is Election Day?
Voters will officially head to the polls just over a month later Tuesday, Nov. 5, for Election Day, though early voting starts significantly earlier in many states.
