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As Election day nears, many voters are about to get side-by-side comparisons of the candidates in major battleground races across the country for the first time. That's right, it's debate season once again and here is a rundown of the debates scheduled in some of the most critical races of 2022, as it stands now.
For various reasons, a few major races we're watching do not have debates scheduled or confirmed. That includes Ohio's Senate race, Ohio's gubernatorial race, Missouri's Senate race, Colorado's Senate race, Nevada's Senate race, New Hampshire's Senate race and Pennsylvania's governor's race.
Here's the must-see list so far:
Georgia Senate
The "debate about debates" in Georgia's U.S. Senate race was extensive, but football star Herschel Walker, a Republican, and Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock have agreed to debate at least once this fall.
That debate will take place on October 14 at 7 p.m. EST in Savannah. The debate will be hosted by WSAV and Nexstar, but will air on other Georgia Nexstar stations across the state.
Nevada Governor
In Nevada's gubernatorial race, both candidates agreed to multiple debates scheduled on different dates. Now, Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo, a Republican, and Gov. Steve Sisolak, a Democrat, only have one debate where they are confirmed to be appearing together.
That will be on October 2 at IndyFest, the third annual politics forum hosted by the Nevada Independent.
Arizona Senate
Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., and his opponent, Republican Blake Masters, have agreed to one debate on October 6, hosted by the Arizona Clean Elections Commission.
This may be the only time Arizona voters will see two major party candidates in a major statewide race debate this year, as Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs has declined all invitations to debate her opponent in the state's gubernatorial race, Republican Kari Lake.
North Carolina Senate
In the race to succeed Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., the two major party nominees will share a stage on October 7 and go head-to-head in a debate hosted by Spectrum News in Raleigh.
Democrat Cheri Beasley had previously accepted a separate debate, hosted by the North Carolina Association of Broadcasters, but her opponent, Republican Rep. Ted Budd, only agreed to the Spectrum News debate.
Texas Governor
Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and his Democratic opponent, Beto O'Rourke, have agreed to one debate on September 30. It will be hosted by Nexstar Media Group at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.
O'Rourke has signaled that he is open to other debates and forums, while Abbott has indicated this may be the only debate he participates in ahead of the election, according to the Texas Tribune.
Wisconsin Senate
In Wisconsin's U.S. Senate race, Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, a Democrat, and Sen. Ron Johnson, a Republican, are scheduled to meet once in a debate on October 13 at Marquette University. It will be hosted by TMJ4 and a variety of other local news organizations.
Barnes has also accepted an invitation to join a forum hosted by Main Street Alliance and the Wisconsin Farmers Union. Meanwhile, Johnson has accepted two other debates -- one hosted by the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association and one hosted by WISN-12 Milwaukee, according to a press release from his campaign.
