Presidential Debates in History That Moved the Needle
On Thursday, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will meet on stage in Atlanta for the first of two presidential debates ahead of the November 2024 election. While their performance in the televised debates could influence the outcome, it wouldn’t be the first time in history that a presidential debate moved the needle in a close race.
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00:00Presidential debates have been a staple of campaigns for decades, and history has shown
00:05that they can have the power to sway undecided voters and solidify public perception of the
00:09candidates.
00:21The 1960 Debate between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon
00:25The first debate between Kennedy and Nixon is considered one of the most significant
00:28because it entrenched the idea that appearances are an important part of presidential campaigns.
00:33The debate is also considered the first nationally televised presidential debate in history.
00:38The best-known narrative about the debate is that then-Vice President Nixon lost the
00:43election because he looked old and tired during the debate, while Kennedy, then a senator
00:48from Massachusetts, wore makeup and appeared young and vibrant.
00:53People who watched the debate on television generally believed that Kennedy had won the
00:57debate, but those who listened to their speeches on the radio believed that Nixon had performed
01:02better.
01:03Now, some historians argue this explanation doesn't hold up because of different demographics
01:08between TV viewers and radio listeners, and we have very little empirical research to
01:12suggest that's why Kennedy won the election.
01:16The 1976 Debate between Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford
01:22After the Nixon-Kennedy election, a long period passed without any general election debates
01:26until President Gerald Ford fell behind during the 1976 campaign and decided he needed to
01:32debate then-Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter.
01:35The debates are best remembered for a single moment during the pair's second debate.
01:39There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe and there never will be under a Ford administration.
01:47Could I just pause?
01:48Did I understand you to say, sir, that the Russians are not using Eastern Europe as their
01:52own sphere of influence and occupying?
01:55Historians argue that the moment was particularly damaging for Ford because of the media reporting
01:59after the debate, which contributed to the narrative that he was clumsy and not up for
02:04the presidency.
02:06The 1980 Debate between Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan
02:10For most of the 1980 campaign cycle, Jimmy Carter had been unwilling to debate Ronald
02:15Reagan, who was considered a master of visuals and humor.
02:19But Carter changed his mind about ten days before the election after realizing that he
02:23was trailing in the polls and needed a last-minute pitch to undecided voters.
02:28Carter peppered his rhetoric with facts and policy, and Reagan countered with one-line
02:33catchphrases.
02:35Are you better off than you were four years ago?
02:39Governor?
02:40There you go again.
02:43Experts argue that Reagan went on to win the election one week later, in part because he
02:48came across as very confident and amiable in that debate.
02:52The 1992 Debate between George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Ross Perot
02:58Unlike most other presidential debates where candidates respond to moderator questions,
03:02the second debate in 1992 was conducted in a more relaxed town hall format suggested
03:08by Bill Clinton's campaign.
03:10The format was seen as benefiting Clinton, who voters thought seemed more likable than
03:15his opponents over the course of three debates.
03:17In one famous moment during the second debate, President Bush was caught on camera looking
03:21at his watch as a voter in Richmond, Virginia asked a question about the national debt,
03:26giving viewers the sense he was being passive or bored.
03:30The debates also introduced the public to third-party candidate Ross Perot, who garnered
03:34almost 19% of the vote.
03:37Exit polls suggested that Perot took votes from Clinton and Bush about equally.
03:43The 2000 Debate between George W. Bush and Al Gore
03:48The debates were particularly important in the 2000 election.
03:52Vice President Al Gore had been in high-profile debates before, whereas Texas Governor George
03:57Bush was a relative newcomer known to stumble over his words.
04:02During the first debate, microphones caught Gore loudly sighing in response to Bush's
04:06answers.
04:07In the state of Texas, that's what a governor gets to do.
04:09At the third debate, Gore walked up to Bush as he was speaking, seemingly to intimidate
04:14him.
04:15Bush smirked and continued on, but the moment prompted the audience to laugh.
04:20Time wrote in 2000,
04:21The pundits and the polls agreed Gore had won the debate.
04:27Then he lost.
04:28Within a week, Bush had opened up a lead in several polls, as voters apparently decided
04:33they were tired of Professor Know-It-All.
04:37President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will now meet on stage in Atlanta on
04:40June 27 for the first of two presidential debates ahead of the November 2024 election,
04:46and they plan to meet again on September 10.
04:49And as history has shown, their performance in the televised debates could influence the
04:53outcome of the election.