The Democratic and Republican candidates will debate three times in 2016 at a series of universities, the nonpartisan, nonprofit commission that runs the presidential debates announced today. The vice presidential candidates will debate once.
The first presidential debate will be Sept. 26, 2016, at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio; followed by Oct. 9, 2016, at Washington University in St. Louis, and Oct. 19, 2016, at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas.
The vice presidential debate will be Oct. 4, 2016, at Longwood University in Farmville, Va.
Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y., will serve as a backup site.
“We appreciate the many applications we received and are delighted with the sites we have selected,” Commission on Presidential Debates co-chairs Frank Fahrenkopf and Mike McCurry said in a statement. “We look forward to working with these fine universities and their students and communities to bring these important civic events to the nation.”
The commission said another campus, Dominican University of California, will lead an initiative to use technology and social media to engage young voters in a discussion of major issues in the 2016 debates (#DUdebate16).
The commission will later announce details about the 2016 debates, including format and candidate selection criteria. Moderators will be announced in 2016.
More information can be found at www.debates.org or @debates.
Lesley Clark: 202-383-6054, @lesleyclark