THE NEW YORK TIMES: Kamala Harris and Donald Trump prepare for debate showdown in tight race

It has been 76 days since President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump debated June 27.

Wednesday at 11am, AEST, with 54 days remaining until Election Day and far fewer than that before early voting begins, Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris will meet for their own debate on a date and stage intended for the original matchup.

Harris, who Sunday declared herself “ready,” has been preparing intensively with an adviser mimicking her rival. Trump has been preparing much more loosely, in sessions in which members of his staff talk to him about his record.

Monday’s biggest campaign event will be with Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who is holding a rally in the evening in Reno, Nevada. Separately, Gwen Walz and Doug Emhoff, the spouses of Walz and Harris, are set for an event focused on reproductive rights in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Here’s what else to know.

— On the trail: All eyes will be on Philadelphia on Tuesday for the debate, which will be hosted by ABC News, but Walz is also set to campaign in Phoenix. Harris and Biden are expected to attend Sept. 11 memorial events Wednesday — the 23rd anniversary of the attacks — at ground zero, the Pentagon and the Flight 93 crash site in Pennsylvania. The Harris campaign has also announced plans for post-debate visits to four battleground states: North Carolina, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The Trump campaign has so far not announced any campaign appearances this week for the former president or his running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, but both men are expected to attend a number of fundraisers.

— A neck-and-neck campaign: A New York Times/Siena College poll of likely voters shows Trump and Harris in a tight race, 48% for Trump to 47% for Harris, a difference within the poll’s margin of error. A substantial slice of voters said they didn’t yet know enough about Harris and her policies, underscoring the importance of the debate in a tight race. The poll made clear that, even after a euphoric month for Democrats, the race could go either way.

— Harris ad: Her campaign on Tuesday will air an ad that shows several former Trump administration officials criticizing him and saying he is not fit to hold the presidency again. The ad includes public comments from former Vice President Mike Pence; former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper; John Bolton, the former national security adviser; and Mark Milley, a retired general and former chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. It will air on Fox News in the media markets of Philadelphia, where the debate is taking place, and West Palm Beach, Florida, where Trump lives.

— Anti-Trump Republicans: Several Republicans in recent days have endorsed Harris or said they wouldn’t endorse Trump, even as the vast majority of the party’s rank-and-file voters and elected officials continue to support him. Liz Cheney, a former U.S. congresswoman from Wyoming; her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney; and Jimmy McCain, the son of John McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee, said they would vote for Harris. Former President George W. Bush said he would not make an endorsement.

— Threats from Trump: Trump threatened on his social media platform over the weekend to have his administration, if he wins, prosecute anyone whom he deems to have “cheated” or engaged in “unscrupulous behaviour” in the election. And at a rally in Mosinee, Wisconsin, he vowed to fire civil servants who have carried out Biden administration policies.

— Harris radio interview: Harris expects Trump to lie repeatedly during their debate, she said in a radio interview that was broadcast Monday. Her prediction, which she made in an interview that was recorded Wednesday, serves as a bit of table-setting as her campaign has sought to both lower expectations for the vice president and pump up Trump’s debating abilities.

— A Zoom fundraiser: A live-streamed “Paisans for Kamala” fundraiser Sunday night, hosted by the Italian American Democrats, was the latest of several dozen similar efforts that have raised millions of dollars on behalf of Harris.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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