The Commission on Presidential Debates will hold the first of three presidential debates on September 29, 2020, between President Donald Trump (R) and former Vice President Joe Biden (D).

The debate will be 90 minutes without commercial breaks. It will be divided into 15-minute segments on the following six topics:[1]

-The Trump and Biden records

-The Supreme Court

-COVID-19

-The economy

-Race and violence in our cities

The integrity of the election

Fox News' Chris Wallace, the debate's moderator, selected the topics.[2]

Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio, will co-host the debate. The University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, was originally scheduled to host the event but withdrew on July 27, 2020, in response to the coronavirus pandemic.[3][4] The debate will take place in person at the Sheila and Eric Samson Pavilion.[5]

To qualify, a candidate must meet certain constitutional, ballot access, and polling requirements. Click here to learn more about them.

Debate format

The debate will be 90 minutes long and aired live without commercial interruption. Chris Wallace, an anchor of Fox News Sunday, will be the sole moderator. Wallace will select the questions for the debate, dividing the event into six, 15-minute segments organized by topic.[6]

Cleveland Clinic executive Dr. James Merlino said the audience would likely be limited to 200 people. Attendance would require following public health protocols, including sanitizing hands, conducting health screens, and wearing masks.[7]