The debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump was a crucial moment in the US presidential election — with potentially historic consequences.
The stakes were particularly high for Harris. Although she has been vice-president for almost four years, Harris is still a relatively unknown quantity for many American voters. She only became the Democratic nominee in July, after Joe Biden belatedly decided not to seek a second term. The memory of Biden’s catastrophic performance in his own debate with Trump little over 10 weeks ago — which in effect forced him out of the race — underlined the potential risks for Harris of a weak performance, this late in the campaign.
Harris had not won the nomination through the usual testing process of the primary elections. Nor has she given many interviews. Trump and the Republicans had claimed that her campaign team was shielding her from scrutiny because she is a lightweight, who would not be able to cope without a teleprompter. Some Democrats may have quietly feared that was true.
In the event, Harris gave a confident and fluent performance in the debate — demonstrating that she is robust under pressure, a fluent communicator and quick on her feet. These are all qualities that make her a much more credible candidate for the presidency.
The vice-president’s performance was not flawless. She initially appeared nervous and her first answer on the economy was evasive and clearly scripted. But as the debate wore on, Harris grew in confidence — and she gave strong answers on important questions such as abortion and the future of American democracy.
Above all, Harris was not flustered by the predictable aggression of her opponent. Instead, it was Trump who appeared increasingly rattled and unhinged.
The fact that the Republican candidate makes wild and false claims is not, unfortunately, new information. But even by his own debased standards, Trump had a bad night. He claimed that there are states in America where newborn children are “executed”, and that elsewhere, illegal migrants are eating pet cats and dogs.
Trump also twice refused to say that he wanted Ukraine to win its war against Russia, stating only that he wanted the war to end. The foreign leader he singled out for praise was Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán — an autocrat who has undermined the free press and the independence of the courts in his own country.
In its own way, Trump’s performance in Tuesday night’s debate was every bit as disastrous as the rambling effort that forced Biden to drop out of the race. But the army of Trump devotees have long held their hero to different standards from those of a normal politician. Few of them are likely to peel away from him now.
Harris will be hoping that her robust performance in the debate will win over some of the small, but crucial number of undecided voters in swing states who will ultimately decide the result of this election. In the next few days, the opinion polls, unreliable as they are, will give some indication of whether Harris (or even Trump) gets a post debate bounce.
Whatever the polls say, it is clear that this is likely to be a very close election that will remain a tight contest until the last votes are cast on November 5. Harris should capitalise on the confidence she and her team will have gained from the debate to wage a more aggressive and open campaign. She has shown that she is a strong impromptu performer. She needs to make herself better known to voters. And her team should press hard for a second debate with Trump — if he is willing to risk it.