With the November Presidential election drawing nearer every day, and with one Presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump already in the books, the two candidates for Vice President will take the debate stage early next week.
The face-off between Sen. J.D. Vance and Gov. Tim Walz is expected to be the only public one-on-one showdown between the two. So what can we expect from the verbal sparring on tap this Tuesday?
First off, Democratic candidate Walz will be positioned on the left with Republican Vance on the right for the debate hosted by CBS News, who published the guidelines. CBS Evening News anchor Norah O’Donnell and Face The Nation host Margaret Brennan will serve as moderators.
There will be no opening statements allowed, no audience present, and 90 minutes allotted for the debate, interrupted only by a pair of four-minute breaks.
Candidates will be given two minutes to answer each question, followed by two minutes of response time for their opponent and then one-minute rebuttals thereafter at the discretion of the moderators.
Candidates will not be given the questions or even overall topics in advance. And while CBS News “reserves the right” to mute candidate microphones, as a general rule, they will both remain live throughout the debate.
Staffers are not allowed to interact with the candidates during the breaks, and candidates are not allowed to have any pre-written notes or props with them. They are allowed a pen, a pad and a water bottle.
Each candidate will be allowed two minutes for a closing statement. A coin toss was held to determine the order. Vance won and elected to go second.
The Vice-Presidential Debate takes place Tuesday, October 1, at 9pm EST.