There is an ongoing debate about debates among statewide campaigns this election cycle, with the first and possibly only event finalized for the two gubernatorial hopefuls with less than three months until Election Day.
That debate, scheduled for Oct. 9, is the first to be agreed to by both Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears and former Democratic Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger. It is slated to be held at Norfolk State University and hosted by WAVY-TV. The Earle-Sears campaign confirmed its intent to attend in a statement sent out Thursday evening. Spanberger’s campaign confirmed she would attend in a statement Monday.
Confirmations from both parties came after three cancellations: The Earle-Sears campaign declined to participate in the statewide “People’s Debate,” which would have been hosted by Virginia State University and AARP Virginia, and the Spanberger campaign declined a debate that would have been hosted by CNN. Neither campaign agreed to participate in a debate that would have been hosted by the Virginia Bar Association…