Kamala Harris and Donald Trump’s Presidential Debate: How to Watch, Official Rules & More Detals

After the first 2024 presidential debate between incumbent President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump aired earlier this summer, everything changed: Biden stepped down from the top of the ticket under pressure from his party, which had concerns about his performance. He then endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to take his place, and she was formally chosen to run for president by the DNC.

So technically, the ABC News debate taking place on Tuesday (September 10) is the second debate of the presidential election season, but it is the first meeting of Trump and Harris (and possibly the last debate overall of this cycle).  So what do you need to know about the Trump-Harris debate?

How do you watch the debate?

The debate between Harris and Trump will air live on Tuesday, September 10 at 9/8c on ABC and stream live on ABC News Live, Disney+, and Hulu. It will be simulcast on other networks, including CBS, Fox News, NBC, and PBS News. ABC’s live YouTube feed for the debate is embedded above and is scheduled to begin at 8/7c.

When and where will the debate take place?

The presidential debate between the Democratic and Republican candidates is scheduled to take place live at Philadelphia’s National Constitution Center.

Who will moderate the debate?

David Muir and Linsey Davis will moderate the debate. A pre-debate special hosted by the network will premiere at 8/7c, an hour before the debate begins, and will be anchored by Martha Raddatz, Jonathan Karl, Mary Bruce, and Rachel Scott.

What are the rules of the debate?

ABC released the following list of rules for the Harris vs. Trump debate:

• 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 else should I know about the debate?

This debate marks the first time Trump and Harris will meet on stage, and it’s the first debate Harris has participated in since 2020, when she ran for the DNC’s nomination. It’s only the second time Trump has debated since the last election cycle and the first time he’s faced anyone other than Biden in eight years, as he declined to participate in GOP primary debates for 2024 and did not face a party contest in 2020.

What are the rules for qualification for the second 2024 presidential debate?

ABC revealed the following regarding the qualifications both candidates must meet in order to participate in the debate:

“To qualify for participation, candidates must fulfill the requirements outlined in Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution of the United States; file a Statement of Candidacy with the Federal Election Commission; appear on a sufficient number of state ballots to reach the 270 electoral vote threshold to win the presidency prior to the eligibility deadline; agree to accept the rules and format of the debate; and receive at least 15% in four separate national polls of registered or likely voters that meet ABC’s standards for reporting.”

Will there be a second Trump-Harris debate?

There were some questions about whether this debate would even happen (and it’s still up in the air whether another will follow).

After Joe Biden decided to drop out of the race, in the wake of concerns by his party members over his performance in the first debate, Kamala Harris quickly announced that she intended to honor the original plans to debate Donald Trump in September on ABC. She also openly challenged him to reconsider his rumored plans to sidestep the original debate during an Atlanta campaign event.

However, on August 2 on social media, Trump announced that he was no longer willing to debate on ABC, citing a lawsuit he filed (in March, prior to accepting the ABC debate) and instead claimed to have a new plan to debate her on Fox News on September 4.

Harris subsequently insisted that she will show up to the debate on September 10, with or without Trump.

It’s interesting how “any time, any place” becomes “one specific time, one specific safe space.”

I’ll be there on September 10th, like he agreed to. I hope to see him there. https://t.co/zqng89X8QD

— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) August 3, 2024

On August 8, Trump announced that he would attend this debate after initially declining to do so. He also said in a press conference that he agreed to do a third debate with NBC on September 25, though Harris has not committed to that.

Squabbles about the rules subsequently took place between the candidates, as Harris’ camp wanted no mute buttons for the candidates while Trump’s reportedly did. ABC quietly resolved those issues and announced the official rules above on September 4.

It is unknown at this time if another presidential debate between the two current candidates will take place. Harris has not committed to Trump’s suggestion of an NBC debate on September 25 (and the proposed Fox debate on September 4 did not happen). However, she also left open the possibility of the two scheduling another debate after the September 10 debate takes place.