2012 Presidential Debate Schedule

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The dates and venues have been announced for the 2012 Presidential debates between President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney. The date for the Vice Presidential debate between Vice President Joe Biden and Congressman Paul Ryan has also been announced. Note the broadcast times and channels are identical for the Presidential debates and the Vice Presidential debate.

Tickets – Tickets for each debate are controlled by the Commission on Presidential Debates and are extremely limited since the debates are primarily produced for television. The majority of tickets are distributed to host university students and faculty through a lottery system. Please click the “Tickets” link next to the college name listed below for further information.

TV Channels – Each debate will be broadcast live on C-SPAN, ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC, as well as all cable news channels including CNN, Fox News and MSNBC among others.

Full Videos – Click the “Watch Full Video Link” below on each debate to watch the entire debate video.

Wednesday October 3, 2012	Watch Full Debate Video Transcript Topic: Domestic policy Air Time: 9:00-10:30 p.m. Eastern Time Location: University of Denver in Denver, Colorado (Tickets) Sponsor: Commission on Presidential Debates Participants: President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney Moderator: Jim Lehrer (Host of NewsHour on PBS) The debate will focus on domestic policy and be divided into six time segments of approximately 15 minutes each on topics to be selected by the moderator and announced several weeks before the debate. The moderator will open each segment with a question, after which each candidate will have two minutes to respond. The moderator will use the balance of the time in the segment for a discussion of the topic.
Thursday October 11, 2012 Vice Presidential	Watch Full VP Debate Video Transcript Topic: Foreign and domestic policy Air Time: 9:00-10:30 p.m. Eastern Time Location: Centre College in Danville, Kentucky (Tickets) Sponsor: Commission on Presidential Debates Participants: Vice President Joe Biden and Congressman Paul Ryan Moderator: Martha Raddatz (ABC News Chief Foreign Correspondent) The debate will cover both foreign and domestic topics and be divided into nine time segments of approximately 10 minutes each. The moderator will ask an opening question, after which each candidate will have two minutes to respond. The moderator will use the balance of the time in the segment for a discussion of the question.
Tuesday October 16, 2012	Watch Full Debate Video Transcript Topic: Town meeting format including foreign and domestic policy Air Time: 9:00-10:30 p.m. Eastern Time Location: Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York (Tickets) Sponsor: Commission on Presidential Debates Participants: President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney Moderator: Candy Crowley (CNN Chief Political Correspondent) The second presidential debate will take the form of a town meeting, in which citizens will ask questions of the candidates on foreign and domestic issues. Candidates each will have two minutes to respond, and an additional minute for the moderator to facilitate a discussion. The town meeting participants will be undecided voters selected by the Gallup Organization.
Monday October 22, 2012	Watch Full Debate Video Transcript Topic: Foreign policy Air Time: 9:00-10:30 p.m. Eastern Time Location: Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida (Tickets) Sponsor: Commission on Presidential Debates Participants: President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney Moderator: Bob Schieffer (Host of Face the Nation on CBS) The format for the debate will be identical to the first presidential debate and will focus on foreign policy.