CNN
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Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday accepted an invitation from CNN to debate former President Donald Trump on October 23, challenging her rival to another public appearance in the final weeks of the campaign.
“Vice President Harris is ready for another opportunity to share the stage with Donald Trump,” campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon said in a statement. “Donald Trump should have no problem agreeing to this debate.”
Harris tweeted on Saturday that she would “love to participate in a second presidential debate” and that she hopes Trump will “join her” on October 23.
Trump argued on Saturday that it was “too late” to hold another presidential debate because Americans had already begun casting their votes for the 2024 election.
“The problem with another debate is that it’s just too late, the voting has already started,” Trump said at a rally in Wilmington, North Carolina.
Traditionally, the presidential candidates have the final say in a nationally televised debate in October that follows the vice presidential candidates’ debate. Trump’s running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance, will face Harris’s vice presidential candidate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, in a debate moderated by CBS on October 1.
Trump hinted last week that he might be willing to participate in a third presidential debate after facing Harris on ABC in Philadelphia on Sept. 10. “Maybe if I get in the right frame of mind,” he told reporters during a stop in California, after earlier posting on Truth Social, “THERE WILL NOT BE A THIRD DEBATE!”
Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung referred CNN to this post from Truth Social when asked Saturday whether the former president would accept the invitation to the debate.
Harris’ campaign last week rejected Trump’s announcement that there would be no further debate. A senior adviser said the former president “changes his position every day.” The vice president, meanwhile, immediately called for another debate, saying, “I think we owe that to the voters.”
The October debate would be a mirror image of the first presidential debate in June 2024 between Trump and President Joe Biden and would take place in CNN’s studios in Atlanta, the network said. Trump and Harris would answer questions from moderators for 90 minutes without a live audience in the studio.
“Both Vice President Harris and former President Trump received an invitation to participate in a CNN debate this fall because we believe the American people would benefit from a second debate between the two candidates for President of the United States,” the network said in a statement. “We look forward to a response from both campaigns so that the American public can learn more from these candidates as they make their final decision.”
The CNN debate between Trump and Biden on June 27 proved to be a momentous showdown that turned the course of the campaign on its head. After a dismal performance at that debate in Atlanta, Biden ultimately withdrew from the race and endorsed Harris as the Democratic nominee.
This story has been updated with further developments.
CNN’s Kate Sullivan contributed to this report.
