US president Biden struggles during debate with Trump

Trump and Biden went head to head during a presidential debate

US president Joe Biden and Republican candidate Donald Trump took part in a debate on Thursday evening ahead of the US election in November.

Many people had already expressed concerns about Mr Biden's age and fitness for the role of the country's leader ahead of the event.

At 81, Joe Biden is currently the oldest president in US history.

Mr Biden's performance on the night has increased these worries, and it was very clear the president was struggling at points throughout the debate.

BBC journalists watching said Donald Trump appeared confident, but that on several issues he made claims which weren't supported by facts, and also said some things that weren't true.

Why are there concerns about president Biden?

Biden is the oldest president in US history

Joe Biden's suitability for the presidential role has been questioned repeatedly in the lead up to the 2024 US election and the debate with Trump, which lasted 90 minutes, only seemed to make things worse.

Throughout the discussion, which was broadcast live, Mr Biden rambled, left long pauses, stumbled over his words throughout and wasn't able to respond quickly to his opponent's attacks.

Trump made several claims that weren't supported by facts, but Mr Biden was unable to corner him on them for most of the debate.

The president's voice was also raspy throughout, which was blamed on him battling a cold.

Some Democrats were worried about Biden's early answers during the debate, although Vice-President Kamala Harris defended him, telling the news channel CNN it "was a slow start, but there was a strong finish".

What was discussed during the debate?

A number of key issues were discussed during the debate including immigration and the US economy, which is all about how goods and services are both produced and consumed, and how money is made by a country.

Mr Trump, who was the US president before Biden, repeatedly attacked his opponent on the economy, claiming the US had the greatest economy under his leadership.

Meanwhile, one of the big things Mr Biden brought up was Trump's criminal conviction. Trump became the first former, or sitting, president ever to be convicted of a crime earlier this year.

He was accused of hiding payments made to a woman he's alleged to have had a relationship with while he was married, so that she would keep quiet about it as he ran for president in 2016.

What's been said about the debate?

Thursday's presidential debate is the earliest debate in modern US history, which is something president Biden's team wanted.

One of the reasons for this was to shift the focus to Trump earlier in the campaign season, in the hopes that American voters would be reminded of the issues that came up both during and after Mr Trump's presidency.

However, Thursday's debate seems to have had the opposite effect, with lots of people focusing more on Mr Biden’s performance compared to Mr Trump’s.

Mr Biden's own former communications' director Kate Bedingfield told CNN right after the debate: "There's no two ways about it, that was not a good debate for Joe Biden."

She said his biggest issue was to prove he had the energy and the stamina, and he didn't do that.

The BBC's North America editor Sarah Smith said: "Joe Biden had one job - to persuade Americans he wasn't too old. He failed that test."

It was dismissed by members of his Democratic Party, but BBC journalists watching the debate say there will now be questions over whether Joe Biden will carry on as the presidential candidate.