Trump rules out another presidential debate with Harris

Vice President says debate with opponent is necessary because 'what is at stake could not be more important'

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks during the debate with Democratic candidate Kamala Harris on September 10. AP

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Republican nominee Donald Trump on Thursday ruled out taking part in another debate with US Vice President Kamala Harris after his performance at their first meeting was widely panned.

“There will be no third debate,” Mr Trump wrote in all capital letters on his Truth Social platform after the Harris campaign requested another showdown in October.

The two presidential candidates met for a televised debate on Tuesday evening in Philadelphia, in their first meeting in a high-stakes election campaignthat ends on November 5 this year.

It was the second debate Mr Trump has had this year, after one with President Joe Biden before he ended his re-election bid.

The Harris campaign had not committed to another debate until after Tuesday’s event, saying a second match-up depended on Mr Trump showing up.

“I believe we owe it to the voters to have another debate,” Ms Harris said at a campaign rally in North Carolina.

She did not directly respond to Mr Trump's announcement, but said to supporters that another debate is essential “because this election and what is at stake could not be more important”.

Mr Trump in his social media post claimed Ms Harris “was a no-show at the Fox Debate” in September. Her campaign said it had never agreed to a Fox News event. Fox, instead, turned it into a discussion with Mr Trump.

The Republican nominee also said that “polls clearly show that I won”, without quoting any sources. Most have showed Ms Harris came out on top.

Mr Trump attacked Ms Harris during a Thursday rally in Tucson, Arizona, calling her a liar and accusing her of flip-flopping on policies. He also accused the two ABC News anchors moderating the debate of being "low lives".

While “winning a debate” is subjective and there is no real way to measure how one comes out ahead, several polls and surveys found voters swaying towards the US Vice President after the Tuesday event.

A CNN flash poll done shortly after the debate found that 63 per cent of viewers felt Ms Harris performed better than Mr Trump. He received only 37 per cent of viewer support in that poll.

Reuters/Ipsos surveyed more than 1,000 voters and found that 53 per cent of people who heard at least part of the debate said Ms Harris won, while 24 per cent said Trump had won.

YouGov's survey showed that 54 per cent of registered voters said Ms Harris won, while 31 per cent said Mr Trump was the stronger performer.

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