How Trump and Harris are preparing for their first debate of 2024

Washington — Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are set to face off for the first time this week as Election Day quickly approaches — with the race upended since the last debate matchup between Trump and President Biden.

Hosted by ABC News at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, the debate could be the only time Trump and Harris go head to head on the debate stage.

Tuesday’s debate follows weeks of back and forth over whether the matchup would occur — and under what terms. Though the president and former president agreed in May to participate in two presidential debates, one hosted by CNN in June and another hosted by ABC in September, the second debate was thrown into question once Mr. Biden left the race in July. 

Trump suggested on multiple occasions that he would not participate at all, criticizing the network. But after Harris baited the former president, accusing him of “backpedaling” on the debate, Trump agreed to the Sept. 10 matchup, while proposing additional debates on Fox and NBC News. Harris only agreed to the ABC debate.

What we know about the debate structure so far

Tuesday’s 90-minute debate, which will be moderated by ABC anchors David Muir and Linsey Davis, will take place without an audience. It’s also expected to feature two commercial breaks, when campaign staff will not be allowed to interact with the candidates, among other rules that mirror the rules at the CNN debate.

During the debate, the candidates will have two minutes to answer questions and for rebuttals, along with an extra minute for follow-ups, clarifications or responses, ABC outlined. No props or pre-written notes are permitted onstage. 

The candidates will have two minutes to deliver closing statements, and Trump will deliver the final statement after winning a coin toss, ABC said. There will be no opening statements. 

Candidates’ microphones will only be live when it’s their turn to speak, an issue that the two sides have been at odds over for weeks. While the Harris campaign argued that both candidates’ microphones should be on throughout the debate, Trump said his campaign agreed to the same rules regarding microphones in place for the first presidential debate. The Harris campaign ultimately agreed to have the microphones muted when a candidate isn’t speaking, although the campaign said a pool of reporters will be present and will be able to hear what a muted candidate may be trying to say. 

The Harris campaign wrote in a letter to ABC obtained by CBS News that the vice president “will be fundamentally disadvantaged by this format,” while noting that the campaign accepted the terms so as not to “jeopardize the debate” from occurring. 

How Donald Trump is preparing for the debate

Heading into the debate, both Trump and Harris highlighted their policy platforms on the campaign trail in battleground states throughout the country, where they remained locked in a close race with fewer than 60 days before Election Day. Trump campaigned in North Carolina and Wisconsin in recent days. 

The former president has been reviewing policy positions with advisors in the lead up to the debate, sources familiar with the former president’s preparation told CBS News, though his preparations are characterized as somewhat informal and include speaking with voters and engaging with the media. 

Trump told “Good Morning New Hampshire” last week that he’s “been preparing all my life for this debate.”

“So, you know, I do. I have meetings on it,” Trump added. “We talk about it, but there’s not a lot you can do.”

How Kamala Harris is preparing for the debate

Harris traveled to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on Thursday to prepare for the presidential debate, according to campaign officials and advisers to the vice president. She is set to remain in the area until Tuesday’s debate.

The vice president and her team have used the time to go back to the drawing board on their debate strategy, a senior campaign official told CBS News, after the decision was made to keep candidates’ microphones muted during the debate when they aren’t speaking. While Harris had planned to pepper Trump with questions, her campaign has had to seek out a new approach, fearing that her ability to most effectively engage with the former president will be hampered by the microphone restrictions. 

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who was involved in Harris’ debate preparations against former Vice President Mike Pence in 2020, praised Harris’ debate skills and intellect on Sunday, telling CNN’s “State of the Union” that “she is a very focused and disciplined leader.” But he noted that “it will take almost superhuman focus and discipline to deal with Donald Trump in a debate.”

“It’s no ordinary proposition, not because Donald Trump is a master of explaining policy ideas and how they’re going to make people better off,” Buttigieg said. “It’s because he’s a master of taking any form or format that is on television and turning it into a show that is all about him.” 

When and how to watch the presidential debate

The debate will begin at 9 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Sept. 10. CBS will have coverage beginning at 8 p.m. ET. Find your local CBS station here or tune into CBS News 24/7. 

contributed to this report.