POLITICS
Trump vs Harris debate: Possible dates and TV channels
With both campaigns at odds over the debate arrangements, it remains to be seen if they will reach a compromise and clash on our screens before November.
Debates between candidates are a key component of the presidential campaign trail. Already the singular debate so far was a huge moment; signalling the beginning of the end of incumbent President Joe Biden’s campaign.
A follow-up debate is scheduled for September 10 on ABC News, originally intended to feature Republican nominee Donald Trump and Biden. However, following Biden’s withdrawal from the race and Harris’s subsequent nomination as the Democratic candidate, the debate plans have been thrown into flux.
Trump says the already agreed ABC debate has been ended by Biden leaving the campaign. However, Kamala Harris’ camp says that this is not the case and that they will appear at the debate whether Trump does or not. Trump has been accused of running from debating Harris; Biden gave the former president a particularly easy ride in the first but Harris oculd prove no slouch.
Thus, there are two confirmed debating possibilities:
- September 4 on Fox News (proposed by Trump)
- September 10 on ABC (originally agreed upon)
The new proposal put forward by Trump’s team
Trump has announced that he has accepted an invitation from Fox News to debate Harris on September 4 in Pennsylvania, a crucial swing state. He stated that this debate would be moderated by Fox News hosts Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, and would follow a format similar to his previous debate with Biden.
Crucially, the debate would have a live audience.
However, the Harris campaign has not yet confirmed their participation. Instead, they have accused Trump of attempting to back out of the previously agreed-upon ABC debate. Michael Tyler, Harris’s campaign spokesperson, stated that the Vice President remains committed to the September 10 slot on ABC and will appear “one way or the other to take the opportunity to speak to a prime time national audience”.
The possibility of additional debates beyond these two dates remains open, and there is plenty of time before the November election. Buoyed by recent funding surges, Harris may be tempted to go toe-to-toe with Trump sooner rather than later.