How many homes does Biden own? Trump claim at debate prompts surge in Google searches

From left, former vice president Joe Biden and President Donald Trump traded blows about each other’s finances at the 2020 presidential debate. (Getty Images)
From left, former vice president Joe Biden and President Donald Trump traded blows about each other’s finances at the 2020 presidential debate. (Getty Images)
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After the second and final US presidential debate on Thursday night, the American people took to google to find the answer to the most burning question of all – how many houses does Joe Biden own.

The spike in Google search interest came after an allegation levelled by Donald Trump that Democratic nominee Joe Biden “has houses all over the place”, a claim which appears to be false.

During the debate in Nashville, Tennessee, Mr Trump repeatedly insisted that Mr Biden “lives very well” in his many houses, leading to a rise in Google searches for the phrase “How many houses does Biden own”, as well as a smaller spike in those wanting to know: “How many houses does Trump own”.

Mr Trump appears to have picked up on and repeated false, viral social media posts that say Mr Biden lives in one of the most expensive houses in his home state of Delaware, a claim that has been proven to be wrong by fact checkers including the Reuters news agency.

Reuters found that the Democrat only owns two houses in Delaware, a state where he served as a Senator from 1973 to 2009, and that neither ranks close to the most expensive in the state.

President Trump, on the other hand, owns dozens of properties around the world including several in the city of New York, which has some of the most expensive real estate in the US.

Alongside the odd property-based exchange, the second presidential debate did include some discussions on relevant issues like healthcare, the climate crisis, racial justice and refugees.

Unemployment also rose as a highly searched keyword after the debate, as both the nominees discussed their policies to bring the economy back on track.

While Mr Trump discussed racism allegations on the stage, another comment from him about India’s air calling it “filthy” received a backlash from Indian-Americans and Indians online.

Even with some personal attacks included, the second presidential debate was hailed for having a more restrained tone after the chaos in the first instalment, where the candidates repeatedly interrupted each other.

The candidates will now not face off head-to-head again before the US goes to the polls on 3 November to decide its next president.