US Presidential debate: Voters like Obama, but concerned about his performance
Republican candidate Mitt Romney is under pressure to produce a strong performance at his first face-to-face debate with President Barack Obama to try to turn around a race for the White House that has been edging away from him.
The 90-minute encounter offers the chance to reach more than 60 million people on television, a far greater audience than watched either candidate speak at the Democratic and Republican conventions.
While that has potential dividends in attracting undecided voters, there is also the risk that one or the other will make a major mistake that can overshadow the campaign in the last five weeks before the November 6 election.
Running behind in the polls, Romney is more in need of a victory than Obama at the University of Denver debate, the first of three such face-offs scheduled in the next four weeks.
