After months of negotiations around moderators, microphones, and other details, Donald Trump and Kamala Harris finally debated each other in Philadelphia Tuesday night. But in the aftermath of that combative affair, it’s unclear whether the two candidates will square off again, with about eight weeks left before Election Day. The Harris campaign, in the midst of a victory lap after the vice-president performed strongly on Tuesday, is enthused about a second meeting. Trump, who has railed against Tuesday’s ABC moderators, downplayed the possibility, and it’s unclear whether he would accept any host but Fox News. Here’s what we know about a potential second face-off between Harris and Trump.
Harris is all in
Most pundits and politicos declared Harris the clear winner of the first debate. Riding on that confidence, Jen O’Malley Dillon, the campaign chair, issued a statement minutes afterward declaring her candidate’s enthusiasm for another go-round. “Vice-President Harris is ready for a second debate. Is Donald Trump?” she said.
Campaign spokesman Brian Fallon, who was involved in the contentious negotiations for the first matchup, echoed his colleague on social media and called for another debate next month. “That was fun. Let’s do it again in October,” he said.
Trump seems on the fence
After Harris’s team threw down the gauntlet, the Trump campaign cast its eagerness as a sign that she had lost the debate. Campaign adviser Chris LaCivita told the Washington Post, “Of course. They need clean-up.”
Trump himself dropped by the spin room on Tuesday night, telling the assembled media, “It was the best debate personally I’ve ever had.” But he also seemed to throw cold water on the idea of a sequel. “She wants to do another one because she was beaten tonight. I don’t know if we’re going to do another one,” he said.
During an appearance on Fox News Wednesday morning, Trump still seemed less than eager to have another debate. “I am not inclined to do it because I won by a lot, but we’ll see what happens,” he said.
When a future debate might happen
The next scheduled debate is not between Harris and Trump but their running mates: Minnesota governor Tim Walz and Ohio senator J.D. Vance. The potential vice-presidents are slated to face off on October 1 on CBS.
In August, Trump said he had agreed to three debates for the following month: September 4, 10, and 25 with Fox News, ABC News, and NBC News respectively. (Joe Biden had previously agreed to the September 10 debate prior to dropping his bid for president following his disastrous performance against Trump in June. Harris eventually confirmed that she would participate on the same date.)
Trump has consistently raised the idea of a Fox News–hosted debate, suggesting the September 4 date as a possibility. It’s not yet clear if Harris would agree to an event moderated by the conservative network as her campaign never formally accepted an offer for the initial proposed date. A Fox News appearance could give Harris the opportunity to reach right-leaning voters, something she has embraced as her campaign has touted endorsements from prominent Republicans in recent weeks. However, it would mean subjecting herself to a network with a clear affinity for her opponent.
On Wednesday, Trump denounced the proposed moderators for the Fox event, Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, due to their post-debate commentary. “I wouldn’t want to have Martha or Bret. I’d love to have somebody else other than Martha or Bret,” he said, floating Jesse Watters, Sean Hannity, or Laura Ingraham, who are much friendlier to Trump, as possibilities. It’s safe to say Harris would steer clear of Fox if any of those names are involved.
During an appearance at a 9/11 remembrance ceremony in Pennsylvania later that day, Trump said, “I’d do NBC, I’d do Fox too, but right now we have to determine whether we want to do it. We had a great night last night.”
