VP debate live updates: JD Vance and Tim Walz square off in New York City

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A combination picture shows Republican vice presidential nominee U.S. Senator J.D. Vance (R-OH) speaking during his first rally as Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump's running mate, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S. July 20, 2024, and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz speaking inside the Earth Rider Brewery in Superior, Wisconsin, U.S., January 25, 2024.

Tom Brenner | Reuters

Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance and Democratic nominee Tim Walz will debate Tuesday night in New York City, for their sole face-to-face showdown of the 2024 election.

CBS News is hosting the debate, but CNBC, NBC News, and other media outlets are also broadcasting the 90-minute-long event, which is set to kick off at 9 p.m. ET.

The debate is being moderated by "CBS Evening News" anchor Norah O'Donnell and "Face the Nation" host Margaret Brennan.

Vance, a 40-year-old who represents Ohio in the U.S. Senate, was tapped as the running mate of former President Donald Trump shortly before the Republican National Convention in July.

Vice President Kamala Harris, who became the Democratic nominee after President Joe Biden quit the election in mid-July, picked the Minnesota governor Walz as her running mate in early August.

Trump and Harris have debated just once this election cycle, on Sept. 10.

Harris has said she is willing to debate Trump again before Election Day. But the Republican so far has ruled that out.

CNBC reporters will be live blogging Tuesday's campaign news from New York City, Washington, San Francisco and Englewood Cliffs, N.J.

Here's what to know about Walz's track record in Minnesota

U.S. Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Governor Tim Walz speaks on Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center, in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 21, 2024.

Mike Segar | Reuters

Walz has a policy record in Minnesota that some progressives might only dream of.

With a Democratic governing trifecta and a nearly $18 billion budget surplus, Walz has been able to strengthen union protections, invest over $1 billion in housing resources, pass universal paid family and medical leave, make school lunch free for all students, hike corporate taxes and more.

Walz's policy achievements serve as a proving ground for some of the Harris campaign's economic platform. But his liberal spending record and at-times tense relationship with corporations could also serve as a line of attack for Vance in tonight's debate.

Read more CNBC coverage of Walz's corporate battles and his overall Minnesota track record.

Rebecca Picciotto

Where are the candidates ahead of the debate?

Republican Presidential candidate, former U.S. president, Donald Trump, left, poses for photos with Republican Vice Presidential candidate, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, (R-OH), before making remarks to a crowd during an event on August 21, 2024 in Asheboro, North Carolina at the North Carolina Aviation Museum and Hall of Fame. 

Melissa Sue Gerrits | Getty Images

Walz will begin the day in Harbor Springs, Michigan where he and his team have been since Saturday, preparing for the debate. He will make his way to New York City in the morning.

Like Harris, Walz did his debate prep in a swing state, seizing the opportunity to log a few extra days in a battleground and potentially earn some goodwill among voters there.

Vance flew from Ohio to New York City Monday afternoon, ahead of tonight's debate.

While Vice President Harris has no scheduled campaign appearances for the day, Trump has two in Wisconsin. The former president will deliver remarks at 2:30 pm ET at a manufacturer in Waunakee, followed by remarks at 6 pm ET at Discovery World Science & Technology Museum in Milwaukee.

— Ece Yildirim

Vance-Walz debate set in NYC, an epicenter of the affordability crisis

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 31: Skyscrapers loom over downtown Manhattan on March 31, 2022 in New York City.

Spencer Platt | Getty Images News | Getty Images

Vance and Walz will face off tonight in New York City, a fitting backdrop for a sparring match that could focus on the economy and high costs of living, which consistently rank as voters top issues.

New York City is plagued by an ongoing affordability crisis.

As of 2022, the median home price in NYC was $724,000, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The median household income that year was $72,000. As a result, nearly 70% of the population rents their homes.

The office market has also suffered in the wake of the pandemic as remote work policies hollowed out office buildings, leaving some sectors within commercial real estate crumbling.

Still, home to Wall Street and a burgeoning tech sector, NYC's five boroughs comprise the largest economy in the state and one of the largest in the world.

Rebecca Picciotto

The New York Times: 'Harris is the only patriotic choice for president'

The New York Times building in New York on Oct. 26, 2022.

Beata Zawrzel | Nurphoto | Getty Images

The New York Times Editorial Board has endorsed Harris for president in an opinion piece, calling her "the only patriotic choice for president."

"It is hard to imagine a candidate more unworthy to serve as president of the United States than Donald Trump," the editorial board wrote, arguing that the former president is "morally" and "temperamentally unfit" for the role.

The piece also criticized Trump's criminal charges and older age compared to Harris, as well as "his fundamental lack of interest in policy and his increasingly bizarre cast of associates."

"A second Trump term would be much more damaging and divisive than the first," the editorial board wrote.

— Ece Yildirim

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