Though he did town hall events with CNN and Fox News, he refused to take part in any debates with his Republican competitors for the nomination.
The debates commission set the dates, times, and locations of the final debates nearly five months ago, with no complaint from Trump. There are four scheduled, three for president and one for vice president. Two take place in late September and the other two are in early October.
By the time the last two debates air, many states will already be voting early or by mail. Arizona, in particular, thought to be a swing state this year, begins early voting on Oct. 9. New Mexico and Ohio begin their early voting on Oct. 8. Montana and Nebraska will conduct early voting beginning Oct. 7. Illinois begins even earlier on Sept. 26, and South Dakota and Virginia, Sept. 20.
However, Trump has been against early voting in the past, telling his supporters to vote on election day so that their vote wouldn't be "stolen." He also argued that ballots should be purged after election day.
Trump-backed Republican Party leaders are now supporting vote-by-mail in some states, while trying to stop it in others. In 2023, then-Republican Party chair, Ronna Romney McDaniel, said, “We must ensure that Republicans bank as many pre-Election Day votes as possible.”
“The Commission must move up the timetable of its proposed 2024 debates to ensure more Americans have a full chance to see the candidates before they start voting, and we would argue for adding more debates in addition to those on the currently proposed schedule,” said top Trump advisers Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita, in a letter to the commission.
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“We have already indicated President Trump is willing to debate anytime, anyplace, and anywhere — and the time to start these debates is now,” it continues.
During the 2020 election, Trump refused to participate in the second debate, which would be a town hall-style event where individuals could ask questions of the candidates.
The first debate sent Trump's poll numbers down as he stepped on Biden's comments and refused to allow him to speak. Biden finally asked, "Will you shut up, man?"
The court calendar for Trump criminal trials has largely been in his favor, with many delays, though if the Supreme Court rules on the "presidential immunity from criminal prosecution" case, Judge Tanya Chutkan could force an October trial.
Trump's body man Walt Nauta is scheduled to go to court for his trial in the classified documents case on Sept. 29. That could mean significant coverage of Trump's case during the final month of the election season, whether the former president goes to trial or not.
