Top Moments & Candidate Perceptions from the 2024 Presidential Debate
In the 24 hours after September 17th’s Presidential debate, 546 Americans were asked three open-ended questions. The survey was fielded by Civiqs to a representative sample of American voters. You can explore the full coded data set in an interactive dashboard by requesting access.
The questions:
Q1: What do you think was the most significant single moment of the debate?
Q2: How would you describe Kamala Harris in tonight's debate?
Q3: How would you describe Donald Trump in tonight's debate?
Fathom processed the text analytics, to reveal rich and nuanced insight into the moments that stuck with different segments, as well as the attributes they use to define each candidate after their performance.
This snapshot of findings draws from the first question only.
The full findings - including all three questions, with fully coded data, and additional demographic and closed-ended segments - can be accessed by request.
Request access to get access to the full data set in an interactive dashboard.
What do you think was the most significant single moment of the debate?
Three open-ended questions were fielded to a representative sample of 546 Americans, for the 24 hours after the debate. The first question was What do you think was the most significant single moment of the debate?
Policy Position on top issues (16%)
Abortion: 16% of Dems, 6% of Independents, 2% of GOP
Borders and Immigration: 0% of Dems, 5% of Independents, 9% of GOP
Harris’s powerful response on reproductive freedom, in particular refuting Trump's claim that overturning Roe v. Wade was universally supported, and highlighting the real-world consequences for women.
Republican praised Trump's challenge to Harris regarding her role as "border czar" and her perceived inaction on immigration issues. Harris was criticized by respondents for her perceived inability to defend the administration's border policies and for avoiding direct responses to immigration-related questions.
Independents were as likely to bring up the lack of substantive policy discussion as they were to mention either of these two issues.
Harris Baiting Trump's Weaknesses (15% of responses)
38% of Dems, 22% of Independents, 5% of GOP
Democratic and Independent viewers noted Harris's strategic approach to exposing Trump's vulnerabilities. Harris fact-checking Trump was perceived as an especially effective tactic in unsettling Trump and keeping him off-message.
The specific baiting moments that Democrats most cited included:
Calling out Trumps lies (9%)
You were fired by 81M people (5%)
Describing Trump’s rallies (3%)
Harris’s facial expressions (2%)
The initial handshake was also described as a power move by Harris, by both Democrats and Independents, setting the tone for the debate.
ABC Media Bias Against Trump (15% of responses)
0% of Dems, 31% of Independents, 33% of GOP
A significant portion of Republican and Independent viewers took issue with perceived bias on the part of the ABC moderators towards Trump. This was the most cited single theme among both groups, who cited moderators unfairly fact-checking Trump, while allowing Harris to make unchallenged statements.
Respondents described a "3 against 1" situation, with Trump facing not just his opponent but also the moderators. Some respondents also noted that Harris seemed to avoid directly answering certain questions without being pressed further by the moderators, which added to the perception of bias in her favor.
Trump Coming Unhinged (14% of responses)
33% of Dems, 25% of Independents, 5% of GOP
A significant portion of viewers perceived Trump as unprepared or losing composure during the debate.
The "immigrants eating pets" comment by Trump was highlighted by many viewers (18% of Democrats and 13% of Independents) as being indicative of Trump being unhinged and unstable. This moment became a focal point for criticism of Trump's debate performance and contributed to questions about Trump's fitness for office, among both Democratic and Independent viewers, that showed up strongly in subsequent questions.
Trump's Closing on Harris's 3.5 years (13% of responses)
2% of Dems, 14% of Independents, 27% of GOP
Despite perceptions of Trump's erratic behaviour, his closing statement emerged as a strong moment for Republican viewers, 17% of whom referenced the closing remarks generally and 14% of whom specifically cited Trump’s “you’ve had 3.5 years” comment, challenging Harris about her lack of accomplishments during her years in office.
This appears to have also been a powerful and effective argument for Independent voters, for whom that specific comment is among their most referenced moment.
Harris Defining Herself (12% of responses)
29% of Dems, 6% of Independents, 3% of GOP
Nearly a third of Democrats talked about Harris effectively defining herself and her vision for the country. Specifically 16% of Democrats cite her articulating specific plans and policies for key issues such as healthcare, women's rights, and support for the middle class, as well as her emphasis on moving forward and turning the page from the Trump era.
Additionally, viewers also described her ability to counter Trump's statements, while maintaining her composure and staying on message, as establishing herself and credibility. Harris's approach of speaking directly to the camera and addressing the American people resonated with viewers, as did her emphasis on unity and finding common ground among Americans.
Notably, only 6% of Independents described Harris defining herself or her vision.
Perceptions of Honesty (23% combined responses)
Harris Lying and Deflecting: 1% of Dems, 12% of Independents, 24% of GOP
Trump Lying and Deflecting: 21% of Dems, 8% of Independents, 4% of GOP
Both candidates were accused of lying or deflecting by significant portions of viewers.
Harris was perceived as dishonest or evasive by 12% of respondents, with some claiming she had unfair advantages such as access to questions beforehand.
Similarly, 11% of respondents felt Trump was lying or deflecting, particularly noting his tendency to make false or exaggerated claims.
Perceptions were highly polarized by party ID.