Increased “importance and importance” as Vance and Walz face off in the VP debate

NEW YORK — With a second in-person showdown between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Trump unlikely — and with a race to margin of error still five weeks until Election Day in November — the stakes are high in the vice presidential debate.

While debates between running candidates are the heart of a White House race and have rarely contributed to the need in the past, Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance of Ohio and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic candidate, opposite. There will be increased stakes on Tuesday.

Any big knockout blow – or agonizing misstep – could turn what is traditionally viewed as a secondary event into a momentous showdown.

“Given that there will probably only be one head-to-head duel between the main candidates and that this is the last meeting between the two candidates immediately before the election, this increases the importance and significance of this debate,” said the long-time Republican The strategist and communicator Ryan Williams, a veteran of several presidential campaigns, told Fox News.

THE WHO, WHAT, WHERE AND WHEN OF THE JD VANCE-TIM WALZ VICE PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE ON TUESDAY

Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance of Ohio (left) and Democratic vice presidential candidate Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota (right). (Getty Images)

Most political experts said Harris defeated Trump in their first and likely only debate last month. And flash polls among debate watchers agreed.

A strong performance by Vance in Tuesday's vice presidential debate could give Trump a boost.

CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS POLL ON THE 2024 ELECTION

And there is a precedent from twelve years ago.

After a shaky first debate between then-President Barack Obama and 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, then-Vice President Joe Biden's high-profile performance in the candidates' debate against Romney's running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan, gave the Democrats' candidacy a major boost.

Ahead of the 2024 vice presidential debate, Vance, 40, was very talkative, participating in numerous interviews and answering numerous questions from reporters on the campaign trail.

Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, speaks during a campaign event Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Newtown, Pa. (AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson) (AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson)

Walz, 60, was much more reserved when it came to speaking to the national news media.

The governor was at the debate camp preparing before the showdown. Walz huddled in Harbor Springs, Michigan, near the northern tip of the state's Lower Peninsula, with advisers and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who played the role of Vance in mock debates.

Walz's wife – Minnesota First Lady Gwen Walz – is also helping out.

Asked on the eve of the showdown with Vance how his wife helped him prepare for the debate, Walz told reporters: “She wins them all.”

WHAT THE LATEST FOX NEWS 2024 ELECTION POWER RANKINGS SHOW

A source familiar with Vance's debate preparation tells Fox News Digital that the senator has attended a series of Homicide Committee meetings with his team over the last month, where a group of people ask tough questions and have open discussions to help someone understand to help prepare for a difficult test or exam, or in Vance's case, a vice presidential debate.

According to the source, Vance led a mock debate last week in which Rep. Tom Emmer of Minnesota, the House majority leader, played the role of Walz. Former Trump administration deputy treasury secretary Monica Crowley played the role of one of the moderators for CBS News, which is hosting the debate in New York City.

In the middle of the mock debate, the power went out as a strong storm hit the area around Cincinnati, Ohio, where Vance lives and where the preparatory session was taking place. But according to the source who first shared the details with Fox News, Vance and the team went ahead and used lanterns as lighting and cellphones as timers.

Governor Tim Walz speaks to supporters at a campaign rally in Grand Rapids, MI on September 12, 2024. (Detroit Free Press/Adam Vander Kooy/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Emmer and Walz served together in the House of Representatives for four years before Walz won election as governor of Minnesota in 2018. “I probably know him as well or better than most people on the Republican side,” he said.

And Emmer, denouncing his fellow Minnesotan, argued: “The hardest thing about the Waltz role is lying with a straight face, because that's what he does. He is good at the debate game, but lacks substance.” . There’s a lot of air.”

Former President Trump was asked Monday if he had given his vice president any advice and told reporters, “No, he doesn't need it.”

But he added that he and Vance had “talked back and forth a little bit” and that he thought the senator was in “good spirits.”

Former President Trump (left) and Vice President Kamala Harris (right) faced off in their first and likely only debate on September 10, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Reuters)

Part of the Trump campaign's strategy leading up to the debate is to raise expectations for Walz.

“Walz is very good at debates. I would like to repeat that. Tim Walz is very good at debates. Really good. He has been a politician for almost 20 years. “He will be very well prepared for tomorrow night,” Trump senior campaign adviser Jason Miller told reporters on Monday.

Walz enters the debate with better poll numbers than Vance.

According to Fox News' most recent national poll, Walz was slightly above water with a 43% positive rating and a 40% unfavorable rating.

Vance was in negative territory at 38-50% favorable/unfavorable.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The senator arrived in New York City on Monday afternoon and took a break from debate preparations in the evening to headline a gathering of major GOP donors.

Walz was scheduled to fly to New York City on Tuesday before the debate.

The vice president debate will be moderated by Norah O'Donnell, anchor and managing editor of “CBS Evening News,” and Margaret Brennan, anchor and chief foreign affairs correspondent for “Face the Nation.”

The 90-minute debate, beginning at 9 p.m. ET, will take place at CBS News' broadcast center in New York City.

Fox News Channel, FOX Business Network, Fox News Digital, Fox News Audio and Fox Nation will air special programs of the debate.

Both the Harris and Trump campaigns agreed to two four-minute commercial breaks during the debate. During these breaks, campaign staff are not permitted to interact with candidates.

The other rules — including the ban on studio audiences — are similar to the debate between Harris and Trump in September and the debate between Trump and President Biden in June.

However, there is one big difference: a candidate's microphone is not muted when the opponent speaks.

Get the latest updates on the 2024 election, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital Election Center.