Americans will elect a new leader on November 5. He or she will become the 47th president of the United States. But who will it be?
There are two top for president. They are Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. Trump and Harris met for a presidential debate on September 10. That event gave them a chance to explain how they feel about important issues. It also let them describe how they would run the country.
Donald Trump was the 45th U.S. president from 2017 to 2021. However, he lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden — so Biden became the next president. Now Trump wants to become America’s leader again. He would become only the second person to become president for a second time after losing the job.
Kamala Harris was a U.S. senator from 2017 to 2021. Since then, she has been the U.S. vice president. Now Harris wants the top job. She would be the first woman to become U.S. president.
At first, President Biden was running for office again. He had a debate against Donald Trump on June 27. But Biden did poorly. He soon dropped out of the race. Kamala Harris became the instead.
Harris and Trump had their first (and likely only) debate in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Each tried to explain why he or she deserves their votes. Millions of people watched on TV to hear them speak.
Trump warned that the United States is doing poorly under President Biden. “We have a nation that is in decline,” he said. “We have a nation that is dying,” he added. Trump said Harris shares the same views as the current president. “She is Biden,” he said simply.
“Clearly, I am not Joe Biden,” responded Harris. Instead, the vice president said she brings “a new generation of leadership for our country.” Harris said she “brings a sense of ” as well. She added: “Let’s move forward.”
Will the debate between Trump and Harris affect the election? Time will tell. Election Day is 55 days away.
By Russell Kahn (Russ)
Updated September 10, 2024, 5:00 P.M. (ET)
