Presidential Debates Commission announces dates and locations for 2024

Washington — The nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates announced the dates and sites for next year’s presidential and vice presidential debates Monday, selecting four colleges and universities to host the events before the general election.

The full program includes:

• The first presidential debate will take place September 16 at Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas.
• The vice presidential debate on September 25 at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania.
• The second presidential debate will take place October 1 at Virginia State University in Petersburg, Virginia.
• The third and likely final presidential debate will take place October 9 at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City.

Virginia State University will be the first historically black university or college to hold a general election debate.

“The general election debates in the United States, watched live around the world, are a model for many other countries: the opportunity to hear and see the leading candidates address serious issues in a fair and neutral,” said commission co-chairs Frank Fahrenkopf and Antonia Hernández. in a report. “This tradition has remained unbroken since 1976. In 2024, students at our four debate sites will help bring another series of historic conversations to audiences here and abroad. And their campuses will offer four unique opportunities to listen and learn.

The two major parties will officially select their candidates for president and vice president at next summer’s conventions. The Republican National Convention is expected to take place in July in Milwaukeeand the Democratic National Convention is scheduled for August in Chicago.

A third-party candidate would be eligible to participate in the debates if they are on the ballot in enough states to win a majority in the Electoral College and if they average at least 15% support in five major states. national polls.

The Commission on Presidential Debates, which selected the locations and dates, is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that has overseen general election debates since its founding in 1987. It receives no funding from the government or the Republican Party or the Democratic Party, with the aim of keeping the debates neutral.

Catherine Watson

Kathryn Watson is a political reporter for CBS News Digital based in Washington, DC.