SALT LAKE CITY, UT — The two major-party candidates for vice president, Republican Mike Pence and Democrat Kamala Harris, will face off Wednesday night in this election’s vice presidential debate. The event is planned just a week after a chaotic first presidential debate between President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden.
The debate also comes amid heightened attention on the president’s personal health, who less than a week ago tested positive for the COVID-19 virus. Trump returned to the White House on Monday after spending the weekend at Walter Reed Medical Center.
Pence will appear at Wednesday’s debate despite recent exposure to numerous people who have tested positive for the virus, many of whom attended a Sept. 26 Rose Garden ceremony naming Amy Coney Barrett as Trump’s Supreme Court nominee.
Pence has not tested positive in the days afterward.
Harris has been in Utah since Saturday to prepare for the debate, according to AP. She last reported a negative test on Friday and campaigned in Las Vegas later that day.Subscribe
During the debate, Harris and Pence will be separated by a see-through, plexiglass barrier to reduce the risk of coronavirus transmission, a Democratic campaign official told The Associated Press.
The two will be seated more than 12 feet apart from each other, AP reported.
Here are the details of the 2020 vice presidential debate:
Where: University of Utah, Salt Lake City.
The university held a lottery for fewer than 100 students to represent the campus at the debate. School officials also said attendees will be spaced apart and that face masks will be required.
When: 9-10:30 p.m. ET Wednesday.
Moderator: Susan Page, Washington Bureau chief of USA Today.
The format: The debate will be divided into nine 10-minute sections. Each candidate will have two minutes to respond to the opening question in each segment.
Topics: Page has not provided a list of topics.
Are there more debates scheduled? No additional debates between Pence and Harris are planned. Two more Trump-Biden debates are scheduled; however, given the president’s health, their status and any format changes are unclear.
The dates for the next two presidential debates are:
- Oct. 15: Second presidential debate
- Oct. 22: Third presidential debate
At least some protests are planned ahead of the vice presidential debate. The Utah Students for a Democratic Society will hold a demonstration focused on “eight points of unity,” according to The Daily Utah Chronicle, which include defunding police, taxing the rich and climate action.
Marlon Lynch, the University of Utah’s chief safety officer, said vandalism and violence would not be tolerated at the protest, the Chronicle reported.
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