Harris and Trump to square off in first and likely only presidential debate

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will square off Tuesday night in their first and likely only presidential debate.

This comes as Election Day is exactly eight weeks away and some states start early voting next week. Arizona starts early voting on Oct. 9.

“This could be one of the most pivotal points of the campaign,” said Mike Noble, CEO and founder of nonpartisan polling firm Noble Predictive Insights.

There will not be a live audience Tuesday night, and the microphones will be muted when the other candidate is speaking. No props or pre-written notes will be allowed on stage, but both candidates will be given a pen, pad of paper and water bottle.

“It might be one of the most watched debates we’ve seen, given the dynamics and this historical election that we’re seeing,” Noble said.

The candidates have taken difference approaches preparing for the presidential debate with Harris opting for a more traditional approach, spending the last few days doing mock debates practicing on a stage with lights. On the other hand, Trump says he doesn’t need formal preps and has been holding policy sessions with advisors instead.

“Harris is going to really try to navigate herself away from the Biden-Harris administration and trying to talk about future economic outlook compared to the current economic outlook, where Trump is going to try to really focus on highlighting the issues of where people’s lives were at during his administration compared to the current administration. And of course, try to make some contrast on border security,” Noble said.

Noble says Arizona voters want to hear about economic issues like housing affordability along with immigration during tonight’s debate.

Arizona’s Family asked Noble who he believes has more riding on this debate when it comes to appealing to undecided voters.

“I think the big question is, you know, making sure she (Harris) doesn’t fumble and she can stay on message and stay poised and composed,” he said. “So I think a little bit more pressure there. But you know, Trump too. He’s got to stay disciplined, and what type of Trump are we going to see?”

The ABC Presidential Debate Simulcast will air on 3TV and CBS 5. It will also be livestreamed on AZFamily.com and our free mobile and streaming TV apps. It is set to start at 6 p.m. Arizona time and is scheduled to last 90 minutes.

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