With the election less than two months away, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are preparing for their first presidential debate.
For those eager to tune in, here’s everything you need to know about watching the debate live tonight, Tuesday, Sept. 9, including how to watch, what time it starts, and more.
What Time Is the Debate Happening?
The event will air at 9 p.m. ET and is expected to last 90 minutes, ending at 10:30 p.m. ET, with two commercial breaks.
The second general election debate of this cycle is taking place at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. Pennsylvania is one of seven battleground states that could help determine the outcome of the election. According to the latest estimates, Harris and Trump are currently tied in the state, which holds 19 electoral votes.
The last debate between President Joe Biden and Trump took place in another battleground state, Georgia, at CNN’s studios in Atlanta on June 27. 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.
How to Watch the Debate
ABC News will broadcast the debate live on its network in collaboration with its local affiliate, WPVI-TV/6ABC, as well as on its streaming platform ABC News Live, Disney+, and Hulu. ABC’s World News Tonight host David Muir and ABC News Live Prime anchor Linsey Davis will serve as moderators for the debate.
CBS (Paramount+), CNN, NBC, MSNBC, CNBC, Fox, Univision, PBS, Fox News, and The CW have also announced they will be airing the event live on their channels.
Viewers can watch the debate live on NBC4 or the News4 streaming channel, available 24/7 and free of charge across nearly every online video platform, including The Roku Channel and Samsung TV Plus.
Rules of the Debate
The debate rules are similar to those of the late June debate between Trump and Biden. According to ABC, here are the rules for the face-off:
- Microphones will be live only for the candidate whose turn it is to speak and muted when the time belongs to the other candidate. Moderators will enforce timing agreements and ensure a civilized discussion.
- There will be no audience.
- The candidates will not be permitted to have written notes.
- Each candidate will be given a pen, a pad of paper, and a bottle of water.
- No staff will be allowed to visit the candidates during the two commercial breaks.
- The candidates are not allowed to ask questions of one another.
- There will be no opening statements; closing statements will be limited to two minutes per candidate.
According to ABC News, Trump won a virtual coin flip to determine podium placement and the order of closing statements. Trump chose to deliver the last closing statement, while Harris chose the right podium position on screen.
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