Trump-Harris presidential debate viewership surpasses Biden's in early ratings

The presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump drew in more viewers than June's debate with President Joe Biden, according to early ratings released Wednesday.

Trump and Harris debated for over 90 minutes in Philadelphia on Tuesday night, in the first match-up between the pair. Both presidential campaigns have claimed victory over the debate, but Harris's campaign has also called for another debate in October.

The first presidential debate of the 2024 election season, which occurred between Trump and Biden, brought in roughly 51.3 million viewers, media analytics company Nielsen reported at the time. The debate between Trump and Harris accrued at least 57.5 million viewers, according to ABC.

The preliminary numbers reflect viewers who watched the debate, which was moderated by ABC News, through ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC. ABC saw the highest viewership with 19 million viewers, followed by Fox with a total of 14.2 million viewers across its platforms, per the New York Post. CNN drew in the smallest amount of viewers, with just over four million people tuning into their broadcast.

A more precise reflection of the viewership will be released in the coming days, according to NBC News.

No other presidential debates are currently scheduled for the 2024 season, but a vice presidential debate will take place in New York City on Oct. 1.  The debate will be moderated by CBS News.

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just the News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.