the countdown to the ABC News presidential debate one week from tonight of course right here on ABC vice president kamla Harris and former president Donald Trump fa to face for the first time it could be the most consequential event of their campaigns tonight here the new ABC News poll who now leads in this very close race Rick Klein standing by with the numbers Rachel Scott on the campaign Trail tonight with their first debate just one week away former president Donald Trump invites president kamla Harris preparing for what could be the most consequential moment of this campaign in a podcast interview today Trump projecting confidence while adding a rare acknowledgement that he lost the last election I've done well with the bats I mean I became president then the second time I got millions more votes than I got the first time I was told if I got 63 million which is what I got the first time you you you would win you can't not win and I got millions of more votes than that and uh lost by a whisker Trump never a fan of formal debate prep has been reviewing policy with advisers including former congresswoman Tulsi gabard who once challenged Harris herself on the debate stage Harris taking a much more formal approach as she prepares to debate Trump and what will be their first face-to-face meeting we know this is going to be a tight race to the very end it's going to be a tight race to the very end so let's not pay too much attention to those polls sources tell ABC News Harris has done at least two mocked debates at her Alma moer Howard University her campaign bringing on Hillary Clinton's former senior adviser Philipe ryus who helped Clinton prepare for the 2016 debates to once again play the role of trump the vice president knows she has to make up ground on the economy where polls give Trump an edge she set to roll out a new phase of her agenda in New Hampshire tomorrow focused on building up small businesses by expanding tax deductions Harris positioning herself a champion of the middle class unlike Donald Trump I will will always put the middle class and working class Families First always I come from the middle class I know what I'm talking about both the candidates were off the campaign Trail today preparing for the debate and David tonight we have learned that former president Donald Trump is expected to plead not guilty in that new indictment from the special counsel related to his effort to try to overturn the 2020 the election Trump is expected to hold a campaign rally in Wisconsin later this week as for Harris she has a campaign stop in New Hampshire and then she'll travel to Pennsylvania on Thursday where she will hunker down until the debate David Rachel Scott with us on a mon Tuesday night feels like Monday but it is Tuesday after Labor Day Rachel thank you let's get right to our Washington bureau chief political director Rick Klein Rick this new ABC News IPOs poll shows a very close race coming out of Labor Day David our latest poll with if socials vice president Harris with a six-point lead among likely voters she came out of the democratic convention holding that slight lead nationally but looking just at the key Battleground states on the day that President Biden dropped out you can see all seven of the major Battlegrounds were tipping red in the 538 polling averages Trump leading in all of them by as many as seven points in North Carolina fast forward to today six out of the seven states are leaning blue but some of these leads are virtual tie look again at North Carolina that has Trump up by less than half a percentage Point David one Dynamic we're watching a growing gender gap Harris now leading among women by 13 points that's more than in our last round of polling with I and Trump is up Five Points overall among men it all points to a very close race down the stretch we've heard Harris call herself the underdog and here's one reason why her lead not that much different than Hillary Clinton's was in 2016 a race of course that she went on to lose in the Electoral College it also suggest how close this race is likely to be and it underscores the stakes of the debate one week from tonight David Rick Klein Rick great to have you as always of course the ABC newsl presidential debate one week from tonight right here on ABC vice president KLA Harris former president Donald Trump on that stage I'll be moderating with our Lindsey Davis the pre-debate special 8:00 P.M and then the debate itself right here on ABC 9:00 P p.m. Eastern next Tuesday night