In a highly anticipated move, Joe Biden and Donald Trump have agreed to participate in two televised presidential debates in June and September. CNN announced on Tuesday that the first debate will take place on 27 June in the key swing state of Georgia, while a second debate on 10 September will be hosted by ABC.
The announcement came shortly after Mr Biden laid out his terms for taking on former President Trump in a debate ahead of November’s election. No audience will attend the June debate in Atlanta, CNN said, and moderators will be announced at a later date. ABC has yet to announce more details on the debate it is hosting.
Mr Biden broke tradition by proposing two televised debates in June and September, which his rival quickly accepted before suggesting they debate every month. The Trump campaign stated, “We believe there should be more than just two opportunities for the American people to hear more from the candidates themselves.”
Both candidates have been trading barbs on social media, with Mr Trump eagerly accepting the challenge and Mr Biden making references to his rival’s criminal trial in New York. Mr Biden’s proposal of two debates breaks several established traditions, bypassing the presidential debate commission’s scheduling and opting for no live audience.
According to US media, Mr Biden’s team wants the debates to be conducted with no live audience and with each candidate taking turns answering questions from an agreed-upon moderator. The non-speaking candidate’s microphone would be deactivated to prevent interruptions and cross-talk, which marred the first 2020 debate between the two candidates.
Jen O’Malley Dillon, the Biden campaign chairwoman, emphasized that raucous partisan crowds were not “conducive to good debates,” signaling a new approach to the upcoming debates between the two presidential hopefuls. The American public eagerly awaits these debates as they play a crucial role in shaping the outcome of the upcoming election.
