We’re coming up on yet another round of presidential debates between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, with the issues that will define the race for the presidency in 2024 evolving by the day. Biden and Trump may have faced off against each other before—remember Biden understandably losing his cool and telling Trump to “Shut up, man”?—but it’s anyone’s guess how Trump’s recent felony conviction will affect things going forward.
The first debate is set to air tonight on CNN, from 9 to 10:30 p.m. ET. See details about when, where, and how to tune in for the debate, below.
Where will the debate be held, and how can I watch it?
The debate will take place at CNN’s Techwood campus in Atlanta, Georgia, and air live on CNN, CNN International, CNN en Español, and CNN Max. Viewers can also stream it on CNN.com.
Who’s scheduled to moderate the debate?
Dana Bash, one of the hosts of the first presidential debate, at the 2024 White House Correspondents’ Dinner.Photo: Paul Morigi/Getty Images
CNN anchors Dana Bash and Jake Tapper will moderate tonight’s debate. Tapper has overseen several debates in the past, including the final Democratic debate in 2020 between Biden and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. Bash moderated two presidential primary debates during the 2020 election and six presidential primary debates during the 2016 election.
What kind of rules have been instituted for the debate?
Both Trump and Biden have agreed to forgo props and/or prewritten remarks, and have their microphones muted when it’s not their turn to speak. The Biden campaign won the right-side podium position by way of a coin toss, which gives Trump the final closing statement of the 90-minute debate. Additionally, in a marked departure from past years, the debate will not feature a studio audience.
Will abortion rights be a topic of discussion?
Abortion rights are almost sure to come up at the first presidential debate of 2024, especially given the effort that the Biden campaign has recently put into winning over women voters.
“I think you should expect to hear Trump have to defend why he overturned Roe v. Wade, since we just had the Dobbs anniversary this week and there were women speaking out across the entire country,” says Brooke Goren, Biden-Harris 2024’s deputy communications director. “You may have seen Vice President Kamala Harris’s interview with Hadley Duvall, the young woman who made news in the 2022 midterms because she had been raped by her stepfather and, under Kentucky’s abortion laws, would not have been able to receive reproductive health care. There are so many women who have these kinds of stories that have been flooding the airwaves and social media, so I think you can definitely expect Trump to have to answer for that.”
Each candidate’s age and fitness to serve will also likely come up, as Biden and Trump have already slung verbal arrows at one another over that particular issue.
What other issues are likely to come up at the debate?
Trump has reportedly been drilling responses on issues including immigration and the state of the economy with his team; while the Biden campaign has noted that the president is planning to hold Trump accountable for his history of outrageous comments on various topics relating to democracy and the rule of law.
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