Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will face off on Tuesday night in the first and likely only debate before Election Day.
The climate in the Philadelphia contest is completely different from just two months ago, when Trump debated President Joe Biden and calls grew for Biden to drop out of the race.
WATCH: What to watch in the ABC Harris-Trump debate
Since then, Biden has ended his campaign and endorsed Harris, Trump has survived an assassination attempt, and both candidates have picked running mates and addressed voters at their national conventions.
PBS News’ special coverage will begin with the PBS News Hour at 6pm EDT.
A special digital pre-show will begin at 8pm, looking back at key moments from the candidates and laying out where they stand on key issues.
PBS News’ simulcast of the ABC presidential debate will begin at 9 p.m. EDT. Following the debate, PBS News’ special coverage will feature debate analysis from Cook Political Report Editor-in-Chief Amy Walter, Republican strategist Kevin Madden and Democratic strategist Amecia Cross. Online coverage will continue at approximately 11 p.m. with PBS News’ Deema Zane hosting a post-debate show with correspondents Lisa Desjardins and Laura Baron-Lopez discussing the night’s key moments and what’s next for both candidates.
This year’s presidential election is a true ideological battle between Harris and Trump, with clear differences on taxes, abortion, immigration, international alliances, climate change and democracy itself.
While accepting many of his ideas, Harris has pledged to forge a new path: She calls for tax cuts for the middle class, higher taxes on the wealthy and corporations, restoring abortion rights and an aggressive government tackling climate change.
President Trump wants to accomplish much of what he was unable to do during a term hampered by the global pandemic. The Republican wants to extend and expand the 2017 tax cuts, significantly raise tariffs, increase support for fossil fuels and concentrate government power in the White House.
Both candidates have detailed their ideas in speeches, ads and other forums, but many of their proposals lack specifics, making it difficult to gauge exactly how they would translate into law or how they would be paid for.