DHAKA: German chancellor Angela Merkel and centre-left election rival Peer Steinbrueck are due to take part in their only televised election debate.

The event is seen as the Social Democrat (SPD) leader’s biggest chance to claw back Merkel’s lead in the opinion polls before this month’s vote, reports the BBC.

Although the chancellor’s conservative bloc is expected to win, her coalition partners are faring poorly.

The 90-minute debate starts at 18:30 GMT and will be aired on main channels.

With three weeks to go before the 22 September vote, the two candidates will be grilled by four journalists before an estimated TV audience of up to 20 million.

Peer Steinbrueck will face the first question and Angela Merkel will have the final answer, with each answer limited to 90 seconds.

So far, there have been few campaign issues that have exposed major policy differences between the two figures and the parties have focused on their personalities.

Steinbrueck is often witty but prone to gaffes, while Merkel often seems less than comfortable in the cut and thrust of live debate.

BDST: 1416 HRS, SEPT 01, 2013
RoR/BSK