SCOTT DETROW, HOST:

Philadelphia is getting ready to host the first general election debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and her Republican rival, former President Donald Trump. Reporter Carmen Russell-Sluchansky of member station WHYY joins us now from Philadelphia. Hey there.

CARMEN RUSSELL-SLUCHANSKY, BYLINE: Hi, Scott. How are you doing?

DETROW: Well, I’m good. Let’s just start with the logistics. The debate’s going to be held in the National Constitution Center. It’s hosted a lot of high-profile political events over the years, but it’s a busy stretch of town. It’s right by the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall – and, you know, I’ll just add, of course, WHYY. What’s it looking like right now?

RUSSELL-SLUCHANSKY: Well, Scott, I am literally watching seven-to-eight-foot barriers go up along the street from the window here at WHYY as we speak. Starting tomorrow, we expect many of the roads around the center to be closed off. And by Monday, several blocks will be within a heavily fortified perimeter.

DETROW: So Philadelphians, as we know, are not shy about offering their opinions. How do people who live and work in the neighborhood feel about all of this?

RUSSELL-SLUCHANSKY: Well, you know, I went out, and I walked around talking to people earlier, and really, no one seems to mind it. And in fact, people seem to think it’s kind of appropriate to have the debate here, being that it is like the birthplace of American democracy. For example, this is Eileen Fink (ph).

EILEEN FINK: ‘Cause the Constitution was written here, because this is where it all began. And I understand we’re very much a swing state. It’s a very divided state between Republicans and Democrats, and it’s a very large state.

DETROW: And, Carmen, Pennsylvania has been the center of attention for several elections in a row, but this particular election, it just seems like outsized attention, an incredible amount of attention from candidates this cycle.

RUSSELL-SLUCHANSKY: So much. You know, just this week, Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, were campaigning in Pittsburgh. Donald Trump just had a town hall in Harrisburg. His running mate, J.D. Vance, has already made several visits, which all really speaks to, like you’re saying, how important the state’s 19 electoral votes are. But history also tells us the votes are just going to be close, whichever way it goes. Biden won by only 80,000 votes in 2020, and Trump won in 2016 by only 40,000.

DETROW: Any sense of how the change of the Democratic ticket has affected voters’ views on this race?

RUSSELL-SLUCHANSKY: Yeah. Overall, polling shows that there was a shift in support, with Harris doing marginally better than Biden was in a matchup with Trump. But that race – but the race also remains extremely close, effectively a tie. And our reporting really bears this out, with there being, you know – showing more excitement around Harris than there was for Biden, especially among younger voters we spoke to. So this is Shiva Sharma (ph), who I met at a recent campaign event.

SHIVA SHARMA: I am super excited to be voting for the first you know, president of color. And I feel like this is going to be, like, I bet, a life-changing moment for young girls just like me.

DETROW: I’m curious, first of all, if you’ve been able to find any undecided voters out there and, if so, what they’re looking for from this debate in particular.

RUSSELL-SLUCHANSKY: Yeah. We don’t find many undecided voters. But Eileen Fink, who we heard from earlier, is actually one, and she told me she plans to vote, but she’s not really excited about it because she believes neither candidate is addressing some really important issues.

FINK: I think one of the issues that are not strongly being spoken about is the environment, and not just climate change. There are so many other things about our environment that need help.

RUSSELL-SLUCHANSKY: I should point out she did say she might vote for Harris as a vote against Donald Trump.

DETROW: Got it. Well, let’s talk about one big environmental issue in Pennsylvania, and that’s fracking. The state is a major natural gas producer because of fracking. Harris used to be fully opposed to it. Now she says she’s changed her mind. How is that being received?

RUSSELL-SLUCHANSKY: Well, when I talk to Republicans in the state, they bring up Democrats’ opposition to fracking as a reason to vote for Trump since they, you know, they see it as a jobs issue. Now, however, to be clear, Harris’ views now seem to coincide with much of the Pennsylvania’s Democratic leadership as well, who will call for regulating fracking but not really banning it.

DETROW: Yeah. And what about other issues – any other issues that Trump supporters bring up when it comes to what they’re looking for from this debate?

RUSSELL-SLUCHANSKY: Immigration is another top issue for Republicans, much as it is around the country. They also talk about the economy, especially inflation. So for example, this is Derrick Mason (ph), who lives in Chester, just southwest of Philadelphia.

DERRICK MASON: I think economically, you know, we’re definitely headed in the wrong direction. Prices is booming. So you know, things need to start to come down. And, you know, I think he’s the guy for it.

RUSSELL-SLUCHANSKY: Mason did say he’s going to watch the debate before he made a final decision.

DETROW: All right. That is Carmen Russell-Sluchansky of member station WHYY. Thank you so much for joining us.

RUSSELL-SLUCHANSKY: Thank you, Scott.

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