Tim Walz, JD Vance, agree to Oct. 1 vice presidential debate hosted by CBS News
Aug 15, 2024, 7:38 AM | Updated: 8:38 am
Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, left, speaks at the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Convention in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. At right, Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, speaks at a campaign event on Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024, in Byron Center, Michigan. (AP photos: Jae C. Hong and Carlos Osorio)
(AP photos: Jae C. Hong and Carlos Osorio)
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Ohio Sen. JD Vance have agreed to debate each other on Oct. 1, setting up a matchup of potential vice presidents as early voting in some states gets underway for the general election.
CBS News on Wednesday posted on its X feed that the network had invited both Vance and Walz to debate in New York City, presenting four possible dates — Sept. 17, Sept. 24, Oct. 1 and Oct. 8 — as options.
Walz reposted that message from his own campaign account, “See you on October 1, JD.” The Harris-Walz campaign followed up with a message of its own, saying Walz “looks forward to debating JD Vance — if he shows up.”
Vance posted on X that he would accept the Oct. 1 invitation. He also challenged Walz to meet on Sept. 18.
The American people deserve as many debates as possible, which is why President Trump has challenged Kamala to three of them already. Not only do I accept the CBS debate on October 1st, I accept the CNN debate on September 18th as well. I look forward to seeing you at both! https://t.co/63FyI99dKU
— JD Vance (@JDVance) August 15, 2024
Officials with the Kamala Harris-Walz campaign did not immediately return a message seeking comment on Vance’s acceptance of the earlier debate that he said would be on CNN or whether Walz would participate in that one as well.
Representatives for CNN confirmed that Vance had accepted the network’s debate invitation.
Washington response: Reactions over Walz being named Harris’ running mate divided along party lines
“CBS Evening News” anchor Norah O’Donnell and Margaret Brennan of “Face the Nation” will moderate the Oct. 1 debate, according to the network.
Whether or not Walz and Vance would debate before the Nov. 5 general election had been in question. In just the past several weeks, President Joe Biden left the campaign and Democrats selected Harris to lead their ticket.
Vance has largely kept his focus trained on Harris, whom he would have been set to debate before Biden’s departure from the race. Vance has lobbed critiques against Walz, including questioning the retired Army National Guardsman’s service record.
Former President Donald Trump, the GOP presidential nominee, has said he wanted Vance to debate Walz on CBS, which had been discussing potential dates for that meeting.
The debate is expected weeks after the Sept. 10 top-of-the-ticket debate recently solidified between Trump and Harris on ABC News.
Trump has said he negotiated several other debate dates, on three different networks. Fox News has also proposed a debate between Harris and Trump to take place on Sept. 4, and NBC News is angling to air one on Sept. 25.
During an appearance in Michigan, Harris said she was “happy to have that conversation” about an additional debate.
