Democratic President Joe Biden and his Republican predecessor, Donald Trump, will face off Thursday in an unusually early debate in an attempt to convince voters who is best suited for the US presidency.

The 90-minute televised debate, the first between a sitting president and a former president, will air at 4 a.m. Greek time on Friday on CNN and is expected to attract a huge audience. Trump’s first debate against Hillary Clinton in 2016 was watched by 84 million viewers.

Both men will come into the matchup with advantages and disadvantages. The debate is being held much earlier than normal, more than four months before Election Day on Nov. 5 — and against a backdrop of national polls that show the presidential candidates very close.

In a climate of deep polarization and concern

The televised battle also comes at a time of deep polarization and deep unease among voters about the state of American politics. Two-thirds of voters said in a Reuters/Ipsos poll in May they were worried about post-election violence, nearly four years after crowds of Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol.

Trump, 78, will come to the debate having been convicted while still facing criminal charges, including those accused of trying to sway the 2020 election. The former president, who has said he will punish his politicians enemies if elected, he will have to prove to undecided voters that he is not the threat to democracy that Biden claims.

Biden, 81, has faced criticism for his age and mistakes and is expected to put on a strong performance at the debate after months of Republican claims he is unfit to be president.

The agenda of the debate

The questions that will be raised during the debate and that Biden and Trump, who remain roughly tied in the national polls, will have to answer are as follows:

  • The economy
  • The wars
  • The immigration
  • The future of democracy
  • Trump’s allegations of election fraud
  • Trump’s role in suspending abortion rights
  • Trump’s criminal cases

Biden advisers say the US president will highlight Trump’s role on the abortion issue, portray him as a danger to democracy and remind voters of Trump’s often chaotic 2017-2021 term in office.

Trump will focus on Biden’s management of the US southern border due to the increase in illegal immigrants as well as the economy, especially inflation, while also questioning his global leadership over the wars in Gaza and Ukraine.

The second and final debate of the election campaign is scheduled for September.