Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will face off in their first debate — and both will be asked to adhere to a strict set of rules when they do so.
The acceptance of the rules marks the end of a saga that threatened to derail the debate entirely.
Here’s a look at what to expect:
When is the presidential debate?
The Sept. 10 debate is set to take place 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.
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.
What are the 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.
What did the candidates say about the rules?
President Joe Biden’s campaign had made the muting of microphones, except for the candidate whose turn it is to speak, a condition of his decision to accept any debates this year. Some aides have said they now regret that decision, saying voters were shielded from hearing Trump’s outbursts during the June debate. A disastrous performance for the incumbent Democrat fueled his exit from the campaign.
Once Harris rose in Biden’s stead and became their party’s pick for president, her campaign had advocated for live microphones for the whole debate, saying previously that the practice would “fully allow for substantive exchanges between the candidates.”
But on Wednesday, in a letter obtained by The Associated Press, Harris’ advisers wrote that the former prosecutor will be “fundamentally disadvantaged by this format, which will serve to shield Donald Trump from direct exchanges with the Vice President.”
“We suspect this is the primary reason for his campaign’s insistence on muted microphones,” her campaign added.
Despite those concerns, Harris’ campaign wrote, “we understand that Donald Trump is a risk to skip the debate altogether, as he has threatened to do previously, if we do not accede to his preferred format.” So as not to “jeopardize the debate,” Harris’ campaign wrote, “we accepted the full set of rules proposed by ABC, including muted microphones.”
According to an official with Harris’ campaign, a pool of journalists will be on hand to hear what the muted candidate may be trying to say when his or her microphone is turned off. That detail was not in the full debate rules, also released Wednesday by ABC, which are essentially the same as they were for the June debate between Trump and Biden.
Representatives for Trump — who initially scoffed at the substitution of Harris into a debate arrangement he initially made with Biden in the race — had claimed that Harris sought “a seated debate, with notes, and opening statements,” specifications her campaign denied.
When is Election Day?
Voters will officially head to the polls just over a month later on Nov. 5 for Election Day, though early voting starts significantly earlier in many states.
In Illinois, early voting will begin on Sept. 26 and will run through Nov. 4, with Election Day voting held at a designated polling place from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Nov. 5.