Image source, Getty Images
- author, Sam Cabral
- role, BBC News, Washington
-
The US election season is heating up, with less than a week to go until the first debate between President Joe Biden and rival Donald Trump.
Both men are expected to officially become their party's 2024 presidential candidates this summer.
But on Thursday, the Democratic president and his Republican predecessor will face off on CNN.
This will be the first of at least two debates before the Nov. 5 election.
When and where will the debate take place?
The debate will begin at 9pm ET (1am GMT) on Thursday, June 27th.
It will be broadcast live on CNN from Atlanta, Georgia.
The event will also be broadcast on CNN International, CNN en Español, CNN Max and on CNN's website.
Follow the BBC's live blog for further coverage and analysis.
What are the rules?
Image source, Getty Images
Veteran CNN anchors Jake Tapper and Dana Bash will moderate the debate.
According to the station, the show will be 90 minutes long and will include two commercial breaks.
The candidates tossed a coin on Thursday to determine their place at the podium and the order in which they would give their final statements.
The Biden campaign pulled a twist, with the president appearing at a podium on the right side of the screen, while Trump opted to stand to his left.
But the former president was set to deliver the final remarks at the debate, with Biden opting to give his closing remarks first.
Both candidates will debate, and Biden's campaign has said reports that he wanted to participate in the debate are false.
Campaign staff will not be allowed to interact with either candidate during the event, including during breaks.
Each performer is given a pen, notepad, and water bottle, but props and pre-written notes are not permitted onstage.
Unlike previous showdowns, candidates will mute their microphones except when it's their turn to speak.
There will be no studio audience, and CNN intends to “ensure punctuality and civil debate.”
Isn't it a bit early to discuss this?
This will be the earliest televised US general election debate since 1960.
It will also be the first debate since the late 1980s not to be hosted by its traditional organizers, the nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD).
To explain why this is the case, let's go back four years.
Joe Biden and Donald Trump faced off onstage twice before the 2020 election.
Both debates were nasty and heated, and were heavily criticised by viewers.
But in recent months, their rematch has seemed all but inevitable.
They shadowboxed for weeks, showing that neither was willing to debate the other.
Then in May, Biden issued a challenge.
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At the same time, the Biden campaign issued a series of complaints about the way Chicago police handled the 2020 debates, criticizing an outdated approach that was aimed at creating a “big spectacle” rather than a “good debate.”
They also argued that the debate hosted by the Chicago Police Department comes too late in the election cycle because people in some states have already voted early.
Within hours of the challenge, Trump agreed to two debates: a CNN event next week and a second one on ABC News in September.
These events will be conducted largely according to ground rules set by the Biden campaign.
The Trump campaign has called for a live debate, but his rivals have so far rejected the proposal.
Next Thursday, the two will face off on a debate stage for the first time in four years.
What about RFK Jr?
Image source, Getty Images
The time to qualify for the debate ended one minute after midnight on Thursday.
CNN reports that only Biden and Trump meet all the requirements.
To be eligible to participate, participants had to meet the following criteria:
- Meet the constitutional requirements to serve as president.
- File a formal candidacy registration with the Federal Election Commission.
- A candidate must receive at least 15% support in four national polls to meet the network's criteria.
- They will appear on the ballots of enough states to meet the threshold of 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidential election.
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. did not meet the latter two criteria, according to CNN. The network said he only received three qualifying polls and is currently on the ballot in six states, meaning he has only 89 electoral votes to his name.
Kennedy has accused the Biden and Trump campaigns of “colluding” with CNN to exclude him, and slammed the decision as “undemocratic, un-American and cowardly.”
His campaign has a major influence in this race and threatens to draw a significant number of votes away from the two unpopular major party candidates.
The other candidates were also unable to attend the CNN debate.
How are Biden and Trump preparing for the debate?
Both candidates have begun preparations for the debate in earnest, but they are reportedly going about it in very different ways.
Biden has been meeting with a few of his closest aides at Camp David, the rustic presidential retreat in the quiet mountains of Maryland.
In preparation sessions, the Democratic candidate reportedly pored over a binder of questions and answers, trying to position the election as a choice between two opposing options.
Campaign officials stressed that Trump plans to continue his new, “harder” approach to his Republican rivals and hold them accountable for their political performance.
He is working with his former chief of staff, Ron Klain, who also helped prepare the State of the Union address in March.
The BBC's US partner CBS News reported that Bob Bauer, who served as White House counsel under former president Barack Obama, is playing Trump in the mock debate with Biden.
Biden's campaign co-chairs suggested Sunday that part of the strategy would be to attack his Republican rival's legal issues and character.
Image source, Getty Images
In contrast, the Trump campaign said he has been taking part in a series of “informal policy discussions.”
In those sessions, Trump has discussed a wide range of issues from abortion to crime with lawmakers, including at least two of his running mates, Marco Rubio and J.D. Vance, as well as policy experts, senior advisers and outside allies.
On Saturday, the former president held a rally in Philadelphia where he asked the audience whether they should be “harsh and mean” or “kind and gentle” towards their rivals during a debate.
The former president has set the bar very low for his opponent, claiming that he is “the worst debater I've ever faced” and that he “can't string two sentences together.”
But, he said recently, “I don't want to underestimate him.”
Trump also said he would be treated unfairly by the media, suggesting that this would work against him.
