Washington: In boxing, the undercard bout is designed to give the crowd a chance to see lesser-known fighters, but it generally has little bearing on the main match.

But in a US presidential election like this one – set against the backdrop of two assassination attempts, an ageing Republican candidate facing a jail sentence, and polls showing a neck-and-neck race – the undercard debate between vice presidential hopefuls Tim Walz and J.D. Vance was as high-stakes as they come.

Civil: The Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance with his Democratic rival, Tim Walz, after their debate hosted by CBS News.Credit: AP

Over 90 minutes, the pair sparred on everything from immigration and the economy to abortion and the Middle East, in a contest that was policy heavy but far more civil than last month’s verbal stoush between presidential hopefuls Donald Trump and Kamala Harris.

And unlike that debate – in which Harris repeatedly baited Trump over his crowd sizes, resulting in the former president constantly looking like an angry old man yelling at clouds – there were no real knock-out blows.

In fact, the candidates were so polite and agreeable that it felt at times like a mutual appreciation club.

“I’ve enjoyed tonight’s debate, and I think there was a lot of commonality here,” Democrat Walz said while answering a question about the threat to democracy under Trump.

Soon after, Republican Vance replied: “I hope that we win, and I think we’re going to win, but if Tim Walz........

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