Trump rules out further presidential debate against Harris

Donald Trump has ruled out another presidential debate against his rival Kamala Harris before the election in November.

He said Thursday – two days after the pair's first showdown in Philadelphia – that Harris only wanted revenge because he had “clearly” won.

Several spontaneous opinion polls after Tuesday's election showed that voters thought Harris had performed better than her Republican opponent.

Trump added that Harris should instead “focus” on her job as vice president.

Shortly thereafter, Harris responded at a campaign rally in North Carolina that they “owe” the voters another debate because “what is at stake couldn't be more important.”

According to polls, the race between the two candidates is just under two months away from the election.

Both declared themselves victorious after Tuesday's 90-minute debate on ABC News, in which Harris embarrassed Trump with a series of personal attacks that put him on the defensive, including comments about the size of crowds at his rallies and his behavior during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Trump and his supporters have since accused the two ABC journalists who moderated the debate of being unfair and biased in favor of Harris. Trump himself said on Thursday that he did not need another debate.

“When a prizefighter loses a fight, the first words out of his mouth are, 'I want a rematch,'” Trump wrote in a lengthy post for Truth Social on Thursday.

“The polls clearly show that I won the debate against comrade Kamala Harris, the radical left Democratic candidate… and she immediately called for a second debate,” he added.

The former president held a rally in Arizona on Thursday and gave an interview with Telemundo Arizona backstage. “We just don't think it's necessary,” he said of a second debate with Harris. “We think we've discussed everything, and I don't think they want that either.”

However, the Harris team called for a second debate immediately after Philadelphia and did so again on Thursday, saying voters need to “see what choice they face at the ballot box: go forward with Kamala Harris or go backward with Trump.”

“Vice President Harris is ready for a second debate. Is it Donald Trump?” was the slogan during the campaign.

After the debate, several Trump campaign officials, including Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, said they were confident Trump would welcome another debate.

The next morning, however, Trump told Fox News that the debate was “rigged” and that he was “less inclined” to participate in another debate after his “great evening.”

His decision on Thursday also seemed to contradict earlier statements from his own campaign team. On Wednesday morning, Jason Miller, a senior adviser to the former president, told CNN that Trump had “already announced that he would hold three debates.”

Both campaign teams reportedly argued in a debate on NBC News on September 25. The network has not commented on Trump's latest statement.

“Trump needs a new approach”

Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee – an organization that has advised the Harris-Waltz campaign on economic issues – told the BBC that Trump's decision was a “double favor” for the Harris campaign.

“Voters will have a lasting impression that Kamala Harris looks presidential and is on their side,” he said. “That will probably do her a lot of good.”

“Another debate would potentially help Harris, but it could also shatter the luster that surrounds her,” Green added.

Jeremy Petersen, an independent voter from Utah, told the BBC he was not surprised by Trump's decision.

“If [Trump] “If he doesn't feel like he can land some soundbites on social media, he has no benefit from showing up,” said Petersen, who added that he would likely endorse Harris after the debate in Philadelphia.

“He felt Harris wasn't going to perform as well as she did, and now he's scared,” Petersen added. “He can't stop her momentum through debates, so he needs a new approach.”

More on the US election

Televised debates have been around since 1960, when John F. Kennedy ran against Richard Nixon.

Traditionally, most election cycles feature two or three presidential debates and at least one vice presidential debate.

However, this tradition was turned on its head in July when Joe Biden withdrew his candidacy for the election just weeks after a disastrous performance against Trump in the first debate.

The subsequent debate between Harris and Trump was preceded by weeks of back and forth over whether and under what conditions the summit would take place.

Trump had previously proposed additional debates on Fox and NBC News, but Harris had only agreed to ABC.

In his Truth Social post on Thursday, Trump said his rival had “declined” to participate in the additional debates.

Statistics from media analytics firm Nielsen show that 67.1 million people watched the debate, a significantly higher number than the 51.3 million who tuned in to the Trump-Biden debate in June.

Polls indicate that Harris and Trump are in an extremely close race in the key swing states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll on Thursday showed Harris leading Trump by five percentage points nationally, while 53 percent of respondents said she won Tuesday's debate.

(With additional reporting by Ana Faguy)