United States President Joe Biden and former US President Donald Trump went head to head in the first presidential debate ahead of the November 5 election. In anticipation of the event, analysts worried that Biden's advanced age would affect his message and that Trump would repeat false statements he makes at his campaign rallies. After the debate, both those concerns proved well-founded.
Biden was always unlikely to match Trump's energy, but he started the debate by speaking particularly softly and seemingly losing his train of thought several times. While he did not make glaring errors, he did not have an effective strategy to counter Trump's attacks on his record as president. Biden picked up the pace in the second half, challenging Trump's remarks with more conviction, and going as far as to say Trump has the "morals of an alley cat," but analysts assessed his overall performance as lackluster at best.
Trump made many unfounded claims familiar to his base, including that the US had "the greatest economy in history" and "the best environmental numbers ever" during his administration, as well as denying his role in the January 6, 2021, riot and refusing to condemn people who stormed the Capitol. He blamed illegal immigration for a number of issues, including violent crime, the opioid crisis, and unemployment, and only agreed to accept the results of the 2024 ballot "if it's a fair and legal and good election."
In the ultra-partisan climate surrounding the 2024 campaign, neither candidate was likely to steal voters from the other. However, according to the Pew Research Center, some 33% of eligible voters did not cast a ballot in 2020, indicating a significant portion of the population might be undecided this time around as well. With Biden and Trump still relatively evenly matched in the polls, the candidates were hoping to persuade some new voters to join their cause. Unfortunately, Biden's performance was alarming enough to cause some Democrats to privately call for him to be replaced as the 2024 candidate, and Trump's incendiary and often outright false talking points seemed mostly aimed at his own base. The campaign looks set to remain divisive, with the candidates trading insults rather than focusing on uniting the electorate as they head toward the next debate on September 10.
