Vance and Walz debate brings in 43 million viewers: Nielsen

The 2024 vice presidential debate only brought in 43 million viewers on Tuesday night, Nielsen reported Wednesday, down from the presidential debate last month and the 2020 vice presidential debate.

Tuesday's debate pitted Republican vice presidential hopeful and Ohio Sen. JD Vance against Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz. The debate in New York City was moderated by CBS News, and was broadcasted across 15 networks, including Fox News, CBS, CNN, Fox Business, NBC, and MSNBC. 

The numbers are lower than the 57.5 million people who tuned into the presidential debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris last month. The first debate between Trump and President Joe Biden in June brought in 51.3 million viewers, per Nielsen.

The viewership is also lower than the vice presidential debate four years ago, between Harris and former Vice President Mike Pence, which brought in 57.9 million viewers, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The largest audience in a vice presidential debate occurred in 2008, when 70 million people watched the match up between Biden and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

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