crowd: joe! joe! joe! joe! folks... i don't walk as easy as i used to. i don't speak as smoothly as i used to. i don't debate as well as i used to. but i know what i do know. i know how to tell the truth! crowd: yeah! he seemed for all the world like a new man, reading from the teleprompter with a passion that had been all too absent the night before. i know, like millions of americans know, when you get knocked down, you get back up. it was a far cry from the rasping and rambling performance on the debate stage that was all too often painful to watch. everything we have to do with, uh... look... if... we finally beat medicare. it's left his party in a state of crisis. yet, despite rumblings about replacing their candidate, publicly, at least, democrats are circling the wagons. referring to his own lacklustre performance in a presidential debate in 2012, joe biden�*s former boss barack obama tweeted, "bad debate nights happen. trust me, i know. but this election is still a choice between someone who has fought for ordinary folks his entire life and someone who only cares about himself." despite being just three years younger thanjoe biden, donald trump has consistently condemned his rival as too old to be re—elected. but addressing supporters in virginia, he said the question was less one of age and more one of competence. the question every voter should be asking themselves today is not whetherjoe biden can survive a 90 minute debate performance, but whether america can survive four more years of crooked joe biden in the white house. crowd b00. and the calls forjoe biden to pull out of the presidential race are growing. this, the headline in an editorial in the new york times, which goes on to declare, mr biden is not the man he was four years ago. i don't think so! the word from the biden camp is that their candidate has no intention whatsoever of pulling out of the race, but much may depend on how he fares going forward and what the opinion polls make of his debate performance. david willis, bbc news, los angeles. crowd: four more years! vote counting in iran's snap presidential election is under way following last month's helicopter crash, in which its former president, ebrahim raisi, was killed. the more moderate contender, massoud pezeshkian, a heart surgeon, has widened his lead by nearly three points, with 42% of votes counted. one of the hardline islamic candidates, saeed jalili, is now trailing, after being ahead. the four candidates were all vetted by an influential committee of clerics before they could stand. turnout has been exceptionally low, raising questions about the legitimacy of iran's system of government. let's talk to siavash mehdi—ardalan from bbc persian. it looks like an upset, with the moderate candidate, massoud pezeshkian, leading, with 19 million votes counted. he's got 8 million so far. the hard right candidate, saeed jalil has 7 million. it was thought that the current speaker of parliament would be the winner, and that turned out to be false. the other assumption was that if the turnout is low, it will favour the conservatives. maybe saeed jalil, the hard right candidate, might sneak ahead of the pro—reform candidate massoud pezeshkian. so far, that does not seem to be the case. the reformist camp, having been marginalised and alienated in the past, they are in a position to celebrate. ., ., , , ., , celebrate. turnout has been low. is that ou celebrate. turnout has been low. is that you to — celebrate. turnout has been low. is that you to peeple _ celebrate. turnout has been low. is that you to people making - celebrate. turnout has been low. is that you to people making a - that you to people making a political stance, or apathy? fix, political stance, or apathy? political stance, or apathy? political stance. at its height of political stance. at its height of political participation, 70% of people voted. but now after that live freedom movement two years ago, when i was brutal repression, and the guardian council vetted all of the guardian council vetted all of the other candidates who might seem to be too critical or disloyal to the system. a lot of people thought that it was best to stay away, and by staying away and not voting, they express their protest and dissatisfaction.— express their protest and dissatisfaction. ., ~ , ., , dissatisfaction. thank you very much. lets take a closer look at the leading contenders. reformist candidate massoud pezeshkian is a former heart surgeon and health minister. he is faithful to iran's ruling clerics but supports ties with the west, as well as economic reform. he's also said the actions of iran's morality police, who enforce strict dress codes on women, are "immoral". among the conservatives candidates is hardliner saeed jalili. he is a former secretary of iran's supreme national security council and nuclear negotiator. he served for four years in ayatolla khamenei's office. jalili has been opposed to iran's 2015 nuclear deal and is mistrustful of striking deals with the west. let's speak to rouzbeh parsi in stockholm. he is head of the middle east programme at the swedish institute of international affairs. thank you forjoining us. we talked a lot about turnout on people taking a lot about turnout on people taking a political stance. how much of an issueis a political stance. how much of an issue is that for the legitimacy of this election? the issue is that for the legitimacy of this election?— issue is that for the legitimacy of this election? the supreme leader has often touted _ this election? the supreme leader has often touted the _ this election? the supreme leader has often touted the fact - this election? the supreme leader has often touted the fact that - has often touted the fact that iranians tend to go and vote as a sign of how popular or legitimate the situation is. that is now a line he cannot use. he himself has made this situation by alienating a lot of the electorate by not allowing potential candidates to stand. what does it mean for the country when one of these contenders succeed, whether it be hardline or more moderate? the succeed, whether it be hardline or more moderate?— succeed, whether it be hardline or more moderate? the important thing to kee in more moderate? the important thing to keep in mind _ more moderate? the important thing to keep in mind is— more moderate? the important thing to keep in mind is that _ more moderate? the important thing to keep in mind is that it's _ more moderate? the important thing to keep in mind is that it's a - to keep in mind is that it's a very collective system, it's not something that will stand or fall on one person. but the president gets to modulate the baseline of what the system is accepting or wants to do. in that sense, it makes a huge difference, whether it is the more moderate candidate, more willing it looks like it will go to a second round of voting on friday. what happens at that point? the campaigning _ happens at that point? the campaigning is— happens at that point? tue campaigning is quite important happens at that point? ttj: campaigning is quite important for how well the candidates fair, we are looking to see if the supreme leader will stand where he stands. a lot of people might not believe that he can do much, but they do not want to see saeed jalil as a president. we much, but they do not want to see saeed jalil as a president. we spoke to a corresponded _ saeed jalil as a president. we spoke to a corresponded entire _ saeed jalil as a president. we spoke to a corresponded entire run - saeed jalil as a president. we spoke to a corresponded entire run he - saeed jalil as a president. we spoke to a corresponded entire run he saidi to a corresponded entire run he said the election was not noticeable on the election was not noticeable on the streets until quite late in the week. has that been an issue affecting boating, with lack of information, or is that not the issue here? is itjust that people are choosing intentionally not about? ~ ., ., ., ,, , about? what often happens in the beauinnin , about? what often happens in the beginning. a _ about? what often happens in the beginning. a lot — about? what often happens in the beginning, a lot of _ about? what often happens in the beginning, a lot of people - about? what often happens in the beginning, a lot of people think i beginning, a lot of people think it's not worth it, because a lot of the candidates that they hope would be able to stand are not allowed to stand. we have to remember that this campaign has been very short. in official campaigns it is short, but it is even shorter because this is not a regular election. for the second round, if it goes to a second round, which is what seems to be plausible, i think everybody will have more time to think about what the stakes are. the problem for the electorate in iran, the majority who want to see change, if they don't participate, the other side will get worse. if they do, they will not get as much as they hope for, but they were also at the same time be able to influence the system. you are damned if you do, damned if you don't. . ~ damned if you do, damned if you don't. ., ~ , ., damned if you do, damned if you don't. ., ~' i., ., damned if you do, damned if you don't. ., ~ ., damned if you do, damned if you don't. ., ~' i., ., y., , , don't. thank you for your insights. the head of— don't. thank you for your insights. the head of the _ don't. thank you for your insights. the head of the middle _ don't. thank you for your insights. the head of the middle east - the head of the middle east programme at the swedish institute of international affairs. the reform uk leader, nigel farage, has insisted that secret filming which caught one of the party's campaigners using racist language about the prime minister, was a �*set up'. the footage has prompted condemnation from other party leaders. in a special edition of the bbc show, question time, mr farage suggested the video could have been arranged to smear his party. our political correspondent leila nathoo reports. the leader of reform uk, nigel farage. the final weekend of the election campaign and for one party leader, difficult questions are piling up. what is it about you and your party that attracts racists and extremists, whether you say you want them or not? i've done more to drive the far right out of british politics than anybody else alive. i took on the bnp just over a decade ago. i said to their voters, if this is a protest vote but you don't support their racist agenda, don't vote for them, vote for me. and we destroyed them. nigel farage was challenged last night over homophobic and racist remarks made by reform uk canvassers, secretly recorded by channel four news. one campaigner implied gay people were paedophiles, and another suggested army recruits should shoot at people crossing the channel in small boats, and used a racist insult to describe the prime minister. the prime minister. mr farage insisted that man was an "actor", and described the channel four report as a deliberate attempt to smear his party. this was a comedy act, but it was designed to hurt us and sadly — sadly — some people believe it. let me promise you... so who do you think would have done this, nigel farage? i want nothing to do with people like him and he has nothing to do with us. he's somebody who turned up. we didn't know who he was, and by sheer coincidence, he happened to get teamed up with channel four. elsewhere, nigel farage was questioned about his party's manifesto and how he would pay for his promises. there's a lot of stuff in your manifesto, but how do you actually plan to pay for all this stuff? we can comfortably save £30 billion a year by growing up and being sensible, and recognising if we want carbon free energy — reliable, not intermittent — carbon free energy, the only way to go is small modular nuclear reactors. also fielding questions on stage last night was someone whose views could not be more different — adrian ramsay, the co—leader of the green party. i think we all know that we need |to step up action on the climate| crisis, both to adapt to the changes that are already happening, - but to avoid the runaway climate change that will affect us - all dreadfully if we don't get to grips with this. i and he defended proposing to raise some taxes in his party's manifesto. we're talking about £5 extra a week for someone earning £55,000. - now, what would that get you? at the moment, people can't access an nhs dentist, - and if you can afford to do so, you might be forking out- for a private dentist. well, how much does that cost you over a year? - how much does it cost you over a year to pay extortionate - train ticket prices because we're not - investing in our railways? or to have to heat your home - and see your bills going up and up every month, because we've got the leakiest homes in europe . and we haven't insulated them? so we're setting out a different vision, sonia, for where yes, . we ask those earning a little bit more to pay a little bit more, . including the multi millionaires and billionaires, but it's- about a different type of society. the liberal democrat leader, sir ed davey, meanwhile, will finish his election campaign with a five—day battle bus tour from john 0'groats to lands end. for all parties, the journey to polling day is nearly over. leila nathoo, bbc news. with more on this, our political correspondent damian grammaticas joins us from the newsroom. first of all, what has reaction been to nigel farage's appearance on question time last night? iligihat to nigel farage's appearance on question time last night? what is interesting. _ question time last night? what is interesting, this _ question time last night? what is interesting, this morning, - question time last night? what is interesting, this morning, the - interesting, this morning, the politicians on the other parties on the airwaves and they are very much turning the focus onto nigel farage, his leadership, his party, reform uk, his activists, candidates. that is now what is in the spotlight. they obviously have an interest to do that, but it's really quite uncomfortable for mr farage. you have the shadow defence secretary, john healey, he has been out saying nigel farage was not your comments about this being a stitch up and an actor, he says he thinks there is just an attempt to distract from the fact that there are officials, candidates at the heart of the reform party that have been responsible for racist, anti—gay and other deeply offensive statements. mr healy says this is a question for nigel farage, a question of leadership and how he deals with this. he says he needs to get a grip and he is failing to do that at the minute. nigel farage said, well, he has nothing to do with these people, but remember, it is notjust this one individual, andrew parker, who had a racist slur about the prime minister, there were others caught on camera. in the question time debate, nigel farage seems to distance himself from the three candidates, the questions will be, what does that mean? how far is that distance? more question from nigel farage on that. any other —— in the undercoverfilming, there farage on that. any other —— in the undercover filming, there was somebody else who is closer to nigel farage who was making anti—gay comments. nigel farage said it was somebody who walked into the office as an actor, but that is not the case here. the conservative position is interesting. we have heard from them. tom tugendhat, the security minister, also saying that it needs to focus the attention on what sort of a party and what members reform has. forthe of a party and what members reform has. for the conservatives, of a party and what members reform has. forthe conservatives, it of a party and what members reform has. for the conservatives, it is useful, because they are facing considerable electoral threat from voters deserting them are going to reform. it gives them an opportunity to say, consider what you are doing with that. it enables them to put a squeeze, electorally, on reform. thank you very much. and there is the full list of candidates in the clacton constituency on the bbc website as well as full coverage ahead of this thursday's general election. today, the labour leader sir keir starmer is in hampshire with the shadow defence secretary, john healey, where they are attending a veterans coffee morning to mark armed forces day. 0ur political correspondent harry farley is following the labour election campaign. hejoins me now. what are we expecting him to say today? what are we expecting him to say toda ? ~ . ., ., what are we expecting him to say toda? ., ., ,, what are we expecting him to say toda ?~ ., ., ,, ., today? welcome to hampshire, to another lower _ today? welcome to hampshire, to another lower league _ today? welcome to hampshire, to another lower league football - today? welcome to hampshire, to another lower league football club| another lower league football club that has become a bit of a feature of sir keir starmer�*s campaign over the last few weeks, visiting lower league football clubs in different parts of the country. i'm not allowed to tell you exact where we are because sir keir starmer has in the last few minutes arrived here and the labour party, for security reasons, they have asked us not to reveal his precise location until he leaves. as you say, he is here to mark armed forces day, he is having a coffee morning behind our camera with some military veterans. 0bviously, traditionally it is a demographic that often votes conservative. sir keir starmer is making a very clear pitch for military veterans, making his pitch for those who are concerned about the armed forces. labour are talking about what they were do with the armed forces commissioner. i went through it and counted ii armed forces commissioner. i went through it and counted 11 times of the labour party using the word serve or service, saying that theirs is the ultimate public service, and if labour is privileged to serve, they will demonstrate their support for the armed forces. as i said, they are talking about the armed forces commissioner, which they say would give powers to inspect and report directly to parliament on issues affecting the armed forces such as poor housing, faulty equipment and so on. i think we can also expect questions for the labour leader on issues like defence spending, they have said they want to get a 2.5% of gdp, gross domestic product, on defence spending. they haven't put a time limit on that, they haven't said when they would achieve that, only saying when resources allow. the conservative say they would hit 2.5% in 2030. i think we can expect questions for sir keir starmer as he is here having coffee with the military veterans, on how committed he is to 2.5% and whether he will put a date on it, whether he is as committed as he says he is to the armed forces. thank you very much. harry farley in hampshire. elsewhere, the liberal democrats are kicking off theirfinal tour of the country — a five—day journey from john 0'groats in northern scotland, down to lands' end in the south west of england. 0ur political correspondent tom symonds is following the liberal democrat election campaign. hejoins us now. what can we expect from the lib dems today? what can we expect from the lib dems toda ? ~ ., ., ., ., , today? well, a lot of mileage. this whole trip from _ today? well, a lot of mileage. this whole trip from john _ today? well, a lot of mileage. this whole trip from john o' _ today? well, a lot of mileage. this whole trip from john o' groats, - today? well, a lot of mileage. this whole trip from john o' groats, the j whole trip from john o' groats, the most northerly point, to lands end, it is 1300 miles and they a