NPR poll shows why the stakes are so high for Harris and Trump in the debate

Seven-in-10 Americans say they are going to watch the first presidential debate between Vice President Harris and former President Donald Trump on Tuesday, and 3-in-10 say it will help decide their vote, according to a new NPR/PBS News/Marist poll out.

Trump continues to have the upper hand on many of the fundamentals in this election — he’s trusted more on the economy, immigration and how to handle the Middle East. And people who want a strong leader prefer him by a wide margin.

Because of those advantages, a generic Republican might be able to swing the election in his or her favor. Instead, the race remains a coin flip, with Trump being such a polarizing figure.

Harris is slightly better liked, is seen as caring “more about people like you,” is viewed as the candidate who most represents change, and she leads by a lot among those who say they want a leader who is “honest and trustworthy.” She also has a more significant advantage on abortion rights than Trump has on the other issues asked about.

Harris has her own vulnerabilities, particularly that more people see her as “too liberal” than see Trump as “too conservative,” including 50% of independents. That’s despite the fact that she has tried to tack to the middle on a host of issues, including immigration, foreign policy and fracking, trying to win over those moderate voters in the crucial swing states.

She’ll likely be pushed on those issues in this debate because when she ran for president in 2019, she staked out more liberal positions in a Democratic primary. Harris would say she has traveled the country, learned more and evolved on some issues since then as vice president. But it will be up to her to make the case for herself in this debate.

It all underscores