WASHINGTON — The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) announced Monday the dates and locations of the three presidential debates and one vice presidential debate to be held next October.
The first presidential debate will take place Wednesday, Oct. 3 at the University of Denver. That will be followed by a vice presidential debate Thursday, Oct. 11 at Centre College in Danville, Ky.
The second presidential debate will be held in a town hall format on Thursday, Oct. 16 at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y.
That debate will be followed by the third and final presidential debate on Monday, October 22 at Lynn University, Boca Raton, Fla.
The non-partisan CPD said it will announce the formats for all four debates in early 2012, while moderators will be chosen next summer.
The Obama 2012 re-election campaign released a statement in response to Monday’s news from campaign manager Jim Messina.
“The President looks forward to next year’s debates. Once the Republicans have selected their candidate, we will work through the details with their campaign and the Commission on Presidential Debates,” he said.
Hofstra University was also the site for one of the 2008 debates between then-Senator Barack Obama and Arizona Sen. John McCain. That debate focused on the economy and domestic policy and was moderated by CBS’ Bob Schieffer. It was watched by 56.5 million people.
In the 2008 cycle, more people watched the vice presidential debate — 69.9 million — between then-Sen. Joe Biden amd Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin at Washington University in St. Louis than any of the three presidential debates.