US: Walz With More To Lose In Vice-Presidential Debate

Governor Tim Walz (D-MN) and Senator JD Vance (R-OH) will meet on Tuesday evening for the only vice-presidential debate of the cycle - likely the last debate between the two presidential tickets before Election Day.

• The 90-minute debate will take place in New York, moderated by CBS News, which has confirmed won’t do real-time fact-checking as ABC News did during the Harris-Trump debate.
• Punchbowl News reports: “Vance definitely has more to gain here... Vance’s polling has been abysmal. Some of his public pronouncements have been disastrous. Think “childless cat ladies,” immigration, and abortion. Walz will get pressed on why he didn’t go to Iraq in 2005, as well as his handling of the 2020 Minneapolis riots...”
• CNN reports that Walz warned Harris during the VP vetting process that he was a bad debater… “Now, ahead of [the showdown], Walz privately says he's as nervous as ever...”
• Axios reports: “As governor, Walz had a tendency to speak at a fast clip and trip himself up in unscripted situations, resulting in muddled answers and occasional misstatements... But allies and even past rivals say his everyman approach can neutralize the lack of polish...”
• A NYT poll found that Walz is viewed favorably by 44% of likely voters across three key midwestern battlegrounds, while Vance is viewed positively by 42%.”

Figure 1: Favourability of VP Candidates, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin