随着初选几乎全部结束，很快就是大选辩论的时候了——除了可能没有那么多辩论可以收看。
据美国广播公司新闻统计，在九个关键的战场州，迄今为止已经确定了五场主要办公室的辩论。
大部分阻力来自共和党候选人，他们说，他们希望按照自己的方式进行辩论。尽管这与过去的周期相比并不惊人——例如，特朗普的团队在2020年试图对最终的总统辩论所涵盖的内容提出要求——但很有可能的是，在至少几场对华盛顿权力平衡至关重要的竞选中，这种努力将导致今年秋天根本没有正式的电视辩论。
很少有摇摆州已经确定了日程表上的活动。在德克萨斯州，共和党州长格雷格·艾伯特(Greg Abbott)和民主党挑战者贝托·奥罗克(Beto O'Rourke)将于9月底在里奥格兰德河谷进行辩论。
在佛罗里达州，潜在的对峙是预料之中的，但还不确定。阳光之州在2018年举办了两场州长辩论，尽管还没有官方消息表明候选人是否同意今年进行辩论，但主持人团体“在你投票之前”已经开始在州长和参议员的竞争中开展营销活动。
从那以后，物流变得更有争议。
这是主要战场的详细情况。
亚利桑那州
亚利桑那州共和党人卡利·莱克和布莱克·马斯特斯分别是州长和参议员的候选人，他们部署了一个竞选策略，将他们的对手亚利桑那州国务卿凯蒂·霍布斯和参议员马克·凯利描绘成有所隐瞒，而不是辩论回复，而民主党人的团队表示，他们正在与公民廉洁选举委员会(Citizens Clean Elections Commission)谈判条款，该委员会是该州过去20年的领导小组。委员会要求在本周末前回复回复。
到目前为止，只有在亚利桑那州的国务卿竞选中，共和党候选人马克·芬奇和民主党候选人阿德里安·丰特斯都承诺进行辩论。
莱克正式承诺周三辩论霍布斯。霍布斯的团队告诉美国广播公司，他们“愿意参加”，但“正在要求他们对格式进行一些调整。”马斯特斯使用了与莱克相似的策略，在推特上挑战凯利参加四场辩论，但到目前为止，他只参加了周四的一场辩论。凯利的团队表示，他们也计划参加“与主办方进行一些最后的讨论”
亚利桑那州司法部长的辩论将从8月29日重新安排到9月28日。在回答美国广播公司新闻的问题时，哈马德的团队表示，他们正在与廉洁选举委员会合作，以确定一个对双方都合适的日期，该委员会证实了这一点。民主党人克里斯·梅耶斯几周前承诺原定日期。
宾夕法尼亚州
另一个充满争吵的州是宾夕法尼亚州。本月，参议院共和党提名人穆罕默德·奥兹(Mehmet Oz)博士公布了一份他同意参加的五场辩论的清单，并呼吁他的对手、民主党副州长约翰·费特曼(John Fetterman)透露他是否会参加。费特曼的团队大多保持沉默:这位候选人正在从5月份的中风中恢复，在匹兹堡最近的一次活动后没有回答问题，但发言人乔·卡尔韦洛(Joe Calvello)告诉记者，“我们准备就奥兹国进行辩论。”
在民主党初选期间，费特曼称辩论是“历史的重要组成部分”，“选民应该得到不少于三场网络电视辩论。”
7月下旬，匹兹堡当地电台KDKA邀请候选人参加计划于9月6日举办的辩论，但该电台的一名编辑告诉ABC新闻，只收到了Oz竞选团队的回复。相比之下，Keystone州的参议员候选人在2018年辩论了两次。
与此同时，竞选宾夕法尼亚州州长的共和党州参议员道格·马斯特里亚诺(Doug Mastriano)上周提出了一项规定，禁止新闻媒体独家转播与对手、民主党司法部长乔希·夏皮罗(Josh Shapiro)的辩论，并允许每位候选人选择一名主持人。夏皮罗的一位发言人称该提议是“一个噱头”和逃避极右翼马斯特里亚诺提问的借口，马斯特里亚诺回避了几乎所有的传统媒体，同时他将竞选信息从他在初选期间采取的强硬立场转向——例如，专注于通货膨胀和经济担忧。
没有公开宣布进行辩论。
俄亥俄州
俄亥俄州共和党参议员提名人JD Vance没有立即回应对他的大选辩论计划状况的评论请求。他的民主党挑战者众议员蒂姆·瑞恩的竞选团队已经同意进行三次电视谈话。
“JD Vance早就应该走出他在旧金山的豪宅，访问俄亥俄州，并与他说他想代表的人直接对话。一旦JD同意这三场辩论，蒂姆·瑞恩将在任何其他时间和地点与JD辩论，”瑞安的竞选主任戴夫·蔡斯告诉ABC新闻。
格鲁吉亚
另一场拉锯战在佐治亚州展开，共和党参议员候选人赫歇尔·沃克(Herschel Walker)已同意参加10月14日的辩论。这一协议是在他的对手、参议员拉斐尔·沃诺克(Raphael Warnock)施加压力后达成的，他指责他在上个月发布的一则竞选广告中回避辩论。
然而，沃克提议进行的辩论并不是沃诺克已经同意的:沃诺克此前接受了10月份在萨凡纳、梅肯和亚特兰大进行辩论的邀请，而沃克没有承诺任何这些邀请——这是另一层分歧。
内华达州
内华达州州长和参议院的辩论已经确定，但候选人的参与情况仍不明朗。民主党州长史蒂夫·西索拉克和他的共和党挑战者，克拉克县警长乔·伦巴多，将于10月2日进行对决。
至于参议院竞选，共和党提名人亚当·拉克萨尔特的发言人在推特上说，虽然他“期待”与民主党现任议员凯瑟琳·科尔特斯·梅斯托辩论，但拉克萨尔特的团队“目前没有同意任何辩论邀请，仍在审查所有辩论选项。”
北卡罗来纳州
民主党参议员候选人Cheri Beasley接受了北卡罗莱纳州广播协会的邀请，参加了10月份的一场辩论——但是还没有来自她的对手的确认。
共和党参议员候选人特德·巴德告诉美国广播公司新闻，他对辩论持开放态度，但在劳动节之后才会做出决定。巴德没有与他的主要对手进行辩论，也没有表示他会接受大选辩论的邀请。
Senate candidate John Fetterman addresses supporters during a rally on Aug. 12, 2022, in Erie, Penn. | Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz speaks during a Republican leadership forum at Newtown Athletic Club on May 11, 2022, in Newtown, Penn.
达斯汀·弗朗兹/法新社/盖蒂图片社
密歇根
在密歇根州的州长竞选中，进一步的争议仍然存在，民主党州长格雷琴·惠特莫(Gretchen Whitmer)和共和党提名人都铎·迪克森(Tudor Dixon)在哪个日期最好的问题上陷入了争论，惠特莫的团队向美国广播公司新闻(ABC News)证实，她已经接受了两场辩论:10月13日在大急流城和10月25日在底特律。
然而，迪克森的团队推迟了日期，在推特上写道，“辩论必须在投票开始前开始，而不是像惠特默要求的那样在投票后开始。”迪克森进一步争辩说，她的对手“想要隐藏，但人民应该得到答案。”
针对迪克森的评论，惠特莫的竞选团队告诉美国广播公司新闻，“十多年来，密歇根州在10月份举行了一到两场全州电视直播的州长辩论。惠特默州长期待在10月13日和10月25日的辩论中延续这一传统，这样密歇根人就有机会在这场关键的选举中做出决定时看到候选人之间的明显对比。”
威斯康星州
民主党副州长曼德拉·巴恩斯和共和党现任州长罗恩·约翰逊都没有回应对他们辩论计划的评论请求。约翰逊此前在2016年和2010年的竞选中与对手辩论。
整体情况
去年4月，共和党的国家分支脱离了总统辩论委员会，切断了与大选辩论过程的联系，并废除了30年来形成的两党进程。
共和党全国委员会当时一致投票决定离开该组织，他们声称这是有偏见的。
“我们将找到更新、更好的辩论平台，以确保未来的提名人不会被迫通过有偏见的CPD，以便向美国人民陈述自己的观点，”RNC主席罗娜·麦克丹尼尔当时在一份声明中说。
“CPD 2024年的计划将基于公平、中立和坚定的承诺，以帮助美国公众了解候选人和问题，”CPD当时回应道。
Who is going to debate in key midterm races in battleground states
With the primaries nearly all finished, it will soon be time for the general election debates -- except there may not be all that many debates to tune into.
Across nine key battleground states, five debates for major offices have so far been confirmed for the fall, according to an ABC News count.
A bulk of the resistance is coming from Republican candidates who, they say, wish to debate on their own terms. While that's not a stunning split from cycles past -- for example, Trump's team in 2020 tried to make demands of what the final presidential debate covered -- it's more than possible that in at least a handful of races pivotal to who holds the balance of power in Washington, such efforts will lead to no formal TV debates at all this fall.
Few swing states have confirmed events on the calendar. In Texas, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and Democratic challenger Beto O'Rourke will debate at the end of September in the Rio Grande Valley.
In Florida, potential face-offs are anticipated, but not certain. The Sunshine State hosted two gubernatorial debates in 2018 and while there's been no official word if the candidates have agreed to debate this year, host group "Before You Vote" has begun marketing events in the contests for both governor and senator.
From there, the logistics become more contentious.
Here's the breakdown in major battlegrounds.
Arizona
Arizona Republicans Kari Lake and Blake Masters -- gubernatorial and Senate hopefuls, respectively -- have deployed a campaign strategy to paint their opponents, Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs and Sen. Mark Kelly, as having something to hide in lieu of debate RSVPs, while the Democrats' teams say they're negotiating terms with the Citizens Clean Elections Commission, the leading group in the state for the last 20 years. The commission has asked for RSVPs by the end of the week.
So far, only in the Arizona secretary of state race have both candidates, Republican Mark Finchem and Democrat Adrian Fontes, committed to debating.
Lake formally committed to debating Hobbs on Wed., Oct. 12, after taunting her in a viral Twitter video while Hobbs' team told ABC they "would like to participate" but "are asking them for some format tweaks." Masters has used a similar strategy to Lake, challenging Kelly over Twitter to four debates -- but so far only committing himself to one, on Thur., Oct. 6, which Kelly's team says they're also planning to attend "pending some final discussions with the hosts."
The debate for Arizona attorney general is being rescheduled from Aug. 29 to Sept. 28. In response to questions from ABC News, Hamadeh's team said they were working with the clean elections commission to secure a date that worked for both parties, which the commission confirmed. Democrat Kris Mayes committed to the original date weeks ago.
Pennsylvania
Another state rife with squabbles is Pennsylvania. This month, Dr. Mehmet Oz, the Senate Republican nominee, released a list of five debates he has agreed to attend and called upon his opponent, Democratic Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, to disclose whether or not he will participate. Fetterman's team has been mostly silent: The candidate, who has been recovering from a stroke he suffered in May, did not answer questions after a recent event in Pittsburgh but a spokesman, Joe Calvello, told reporters, "We are up for debating Oz."
During the Democratic primary, Fetterman called debates "an important part of history" and that "voters deserve no fewer than three network televised debates."
In late July, a local Pittsburgh station KDKA invited the candidates to a debate it plans to host on Sep. 6 but has heard back from only the Oz campaign, an editor at the station told ABC News. By comparison, the candidates for Senate in the Keystone State debated twice in 2018.
Meanwhile, Doug Mastriano, the Republican state senator running for Pennsylvania governor, last week proposed rules that would ban news outlets from holding exclusive broadcast rights over debates with his opponent, Democratic Attorney General Josh Shapiro, and would let each candidate choose a moderator. A Shapiro spokesman called the proposal "a stunt" and an excuse to avoid questions by the far-right Mastriano, who has shunned nearly all traditional media while he pivots his campaign message away from the hardline stances he took during the primary -- instead, for example, focusing on inflation and economic worries.
No debates have been announced publicly.
Ohio
Ohio Republican Senate nominee JD Vance did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the status of his plans for general election debates. His Democratic challenger Rep. Tim Ryan's campaign has agreed to three televised conversations.
"It's well past time for JD Vance to venture out from his San Francisco mansion, pay Ohio a visit, and actually speak directly to the people he says he wants to represent. And once JD agrees to these three debates, Tim Ryan will debate JD any other time and place," Ryan's campaign director, Dave Chase, told ABC News.
Georgia
Another push-and-pull is in Georgia, where Herschel Walker, the Republican Senate candidate, has agreed to take part in a debate on Oct. 14. That agreement comes after pressure from his opponent, Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock, who accused him of dodging debates in a campaign ad released last month.
However, the debate Walker is proposing to have is not one of the ones that Warnock had already agreed to: Warnock previously accepted invitations to debate in Savannah, Macon and Atlanta in October while Walker hasn't committed to any of those invitations -- another layer of discord.
Nevada
Both Nevada's gubernatorial and Senate debates have been set -- but the participation from candidates remains unclear. Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak and his Republican challenger, Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo,are set to face-off on Oct. 2.
As for the Senate race, a spokesperson for Republican nominee Adam Laxalt tweeted that while he "looks forward" to debating Democratic incumbent Catherine Cortez Masto, Laxalt's team has "not agreed to any debate invitations at this time and still reviewing all debate options."
North Carolina
And Democratic Senate candidate Cheri Beasley accepted the North Carolina Association of Broadcasters' invitation to a debate in October -- but there's been no confirmation yet from her opponent.
Republican Senate candidate Ted Budd told ABC News he is open to debating but would not make decisions until after Labor Day. Budd did not debate any of his primary opponents and has made no indication that he would accept a general election debate invitation.
Michigan
Further disputes persist in the gubernatorial race in Michigan, where Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Republican nominee Tudor Dixon are locked in an argument over which dates are best, with Whitmer's team confirming to ABC News that she has accepted two debates: on Oct. 13 in Grand Rapids and on Oct. 25 in Detroit.
Dixon's team pushed back on the dates, however, writing on Twitter that "debates must start BEFORE voting begins, not after as Whitmer is demanding." Dixon further argued that her opponent "wants to hide, but the people deserve answers."
In response to Dixon's comments, Whitmer's campaign told ABC News that "for more than a decade, Michigan has held one to two statewide televised gubernatorial debates in October. Governor Whitmer looks forward to continuing that tradition with debates on October 13th and October 25th so Michiganders have an opportunity to see the clear contrast between the candidates as they make their decisions in this crucial election."
Wisconsin
Neither Democratic Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes nor Republican incumbent Ron Johnson responded to requests for comments about their debate plans. Johnson previously debated his opponents in the 2016 and 2010 races.
The big picture
Last April the national arm of the Republican Party walked away from the Commission on Presidential Debates, cutting ties with the general election debate process and dismantling a bipartisan process 30 years in the making.
The Republican National Committee voted unanimously at the time to leave the group, which they claimed was biased.
"We are going to find newer, better debate platforms to ensure that future nominees are not forced to go through the biased CPD in order to make their case to the American people," RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said in a statement at the time.
"The CPD's plans for 2024 will be based on fairness, neutrality and a firm commitment to help the American public learn about the candidates and the issues," the CPD responded at the time.
