Harris puts Trump on the defensive in presidential debate

The jury is out on who won the first, and likely the last debate, between US presidential candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris.

Tuesday’s event in Philadelphia gave Americans their most detailed look at a campaign that has dramatically changed since the last debate in June.

The proceedings, hosted by ABC network, began with an awkward handshake but went ahead relatively smoothly, in part thanks to the candidates’ muted microphones, which reduced interruptions.

Moderators asked the two for their stances on the economy, abortion, climate change, and foreign policy, including the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas wars.

Harris focused her early remarks on the economy, while Trump often pivoted to immigration and promoted conspiracy theories.

The two candidates also had an intense exchange over abortion, with Harris saying women are "bleeding out" in parking lots and Trump sidestepping a question about a national ban on the procedure.

The back-and-forth at the National Constitution Centre was riddled with false and misleading comments, including on job growth and a baseless claim about Haitian immigrants.

The stakes were high for both candidates heading into the showdown.

Harris, who entered the race just seven weeks ago, has had limited time to define her candidacy and win over voters.

Meanwhile, Trump's allies had hoped he would stay on message and turn around what has been a rocky summer for his campaign.

The debate could be the only time before the November election that Harris and Trump could make their case in front of a television audience of tens of millions of voters.

Vice president and Democrat nominee, Harris, was buoyant when speaking to supporters after her confident performance in which she managed to rile her Republic rival.

"I think that we think today is a good day. But we have 56 days to go. And guys, we're still the underdogs in this race. It's tight,” she said.

“We believe in who we are. We believe in the American people. This is a campaign about bringing folks together, knowing the vast majority of us have so much more in common than what separates us."

Trump was bullish about his performance, despite making numerous outrageous and factually incorrect claims during the debate.

“All I do is to say the truth. I say the truth and if I lose votes or gain votes. I don't care. But this was my best debate. I thought it was very good. I thought she was very weak on foreign policy. She was very weak on the border," he told reporters.

Harris’s campaign has almost immediately called for a second debate against Trump, which he dismissed saying she only wanted a rematch because she “lost”.

The potentially pivotal debate saw the two candidates lay out very different visions for the future of the United States.