It will be held Oct. 15, the original date of the second presidential debate.
October 8, 2020, 8:31 PM
• 3 min read
ABC News announced on Thursday that it will hold a town hall with Democratic presidential nominee and former vice president Joe Biden on Thursday, Oct. 15, allowing voters to ask questions to the former vice president less than a month before Election Day.
ABC News Chief Anchor George Stephanopoulos will moderate the prime-time event in Philadelphia.
Oct. 15 was the designated date for the second presidential debate, which has since been canceled over squabbles about the format and timing of the town hall-style debate.
After the first presidential debate, when moderator and "Fox News Sunday" host Chris Wallace struggled to keep the candidates to abide to the agreed-upon rules, the nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates announced that it would reevaluate the rules for the following two debates. Then came the president's positive coronavirus test and dayslong stay at Walter Reed National Military Hospital, which further upended plans for an additional debate.
After days of back and forth on possible date or format changes, the commission announced Wednesday the town hall debate would be held virtually. Biden agreed to the terms, but later in the day the president said in an interview with Fox Business it was a "waste of time."
President Donald Trump pumps his fist as he walks out of Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., Oct. 5, 2020, to return to the White House after being discharged.
President Donald Trump pumps his fist as he walks out of Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., Oct. 5, 2020, to return to the White House after being discharged.The president claimed multiple times after the first debate that Biden would be the one to cancel the debates.
"Joe Biden is too weak to lead this country," Trump said at a rally in Minnesota late last week. "You know Biden lost badly when his supporters are saying he should cancel the rest of the debates. Now, I understand he is canceling the debates. Let's see what happens. I think that's not going to be a good move for him."
The town hall will be held in accordance with state and local government health and safety regulations, as well as guidelines set forward by health officials. Additional details are set to be released in the days ahead.
