Trump: No more debates with Kamala Harris

U.S. Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris (R) shakes hands with former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump during a presidential debate at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on September 10, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AFP

Republican Donald Trump said on Thursday (September 12, 2024) he would not participate in another presidential debate against his Democratic rival Kamala Harris ahead of the Nov. 5 election, as several polls showed that she beat him.

“THERE WILL BE NO THIRD DEBATE!” the former president wrote on social media site Truth Social, after participating in a debate against President Joe Biden in June and Vice President Harris earlier this week.

Although Mr. Trump touted his performance on Tuesday against Ms. Harris, six Republican donors and three Mr. Trump advisers who spoke to Reuters earlier this week said they thought Ms. Harris had won the debate largely because Trump was unable to stay on message.

The debate attracted 67.1 million television viewers, according to Nielsen data.

While Mr. Trump said in his post that polls showed he won the debate, several surveys showed that respondents thought Ms. Harris did better.

Among voters who said they had heard at least something about Tuesday’s debate, 53% said Ms. Harris won and 24% said Mr. Trump won, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Thursday, September 12, 2024.

The poll showed that 54% of registered voters believed that the single debate between Trump and Harris was enough, while 46% had wanted a second debate.

A majority of debate watchers said Ms. Harris outperformed Mr. Trump, according to a CNN flash poll released shortly after the debate. YouGov showed 54% of those surveyed said Mr. Harris won while 31% said Mr. Trump was the victor.