CLEVELAND — The Ohio Debate Commission has scheduled three events before the November general elections according to a Monday news release.
The commission announced a U.S. Senate debate, an Ohio gubernatorial debate and a forum in the race for the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Ohio.
The gubernatorial debate will be held Monday, Oct. 10 followed by the U.S. Senate debate on Wednesday, Oct. 12. The forum for the Chief Justice race is expected to occur on one of those two days.
All the events will be at the Akron-Summit County Public Library's main auditorium. The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Akron Community Foundation, GAR Foundation and, as well as AARP Ohio and the Kiplinger Program for Public Affairs Journalism are subsidising the events.
The formats for the debates and forum, and moderators, will be announced at a later date following negotiations with campaigns. The events will be made freely available for broadcast and live-streaming.
"Well planned debates with skilled moderators give voters a perspective on the candidates and their positions that stump speeches, editorial board interviews, and political advertisements simply cannot," said Dr. John C. Green in the release, Director Emeritus of the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics.
Pamela Hickson-Stevenson, executive director of the Akron-Summit County Public Library, said the library plays an important role in supporting democracy and an informed citizenry.
"The Board and staff of the Akron-Summit County Public library are delighted that the Main Library was selected to serve as the site for the Ohio Debate Commission debates in October," she said in the news release.
Republican Gov. Mike DeWine is seeking his second term as governor against Democratic nominee Nan Whaley, the former mayor of Dayton.
U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, a northeast Ohio Democrat, is facing Republican nominee and author JD Vance in the U.S. Senate race to replace Senator Rob Portman, who is retiring at the end of this year.
Current Supreme Court Justices Jennifer Brunner, a Democrat, and Republican Sharon Kennedy are seeking to replace Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor, who is required to retire under age limitations for Ohio’s judiciary.
“AARP Ohio is working to elevate the voice of Ohio’s 50-plus voters, and we are proud to sponsor these important debates," said State Director Holly Holtzen in the release. "We look forward to lively discussions as candidates address the issues and concerns that are important to older Ohioans and provide solutions that empower them to shape their own futures."
All the candidates have taken part in Ohio Debate Commission programs previously. The Brunner, Ryan and Whaley campaigns have agreed to take part.
The Ohio Debate Commission, The University of Akron and the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics will co-sponsor educational programming for high school and college students on Oct. 11.
“In an election cycle where voters have indicated how concerned they are about threats to democracy, candidates’ participation in high-quality debates — and providing that content to as many Ohioans as possible — is more critical than ever," said Jill Zimon, ODC Executive Director, in the release. "Our record shows our capacity to reach millions of Ohio voters with this important content."
Information about submission of questions by the public and registration for tickets to join the live audience at the Akron-Summit County Public Library will be released later through social media and at ohiodebatecommission.org.