close
close

topicnews · August 28, 2024

Will US Senate debates be announced soon? • Florida Phoenix

Will US Senate debates be announced soon? • Florida Phoenix

With less than ten weeks until the general election, no debate has yet been announced in the Florida Senate race between Republican Rick Scott and his Democratic challenger, former U.S. Representative for South Florida Debbie Mucarsel-Powell.

In a Zoom call organized by the Florida Democratic Party on Tuesday, Mucarsel-Powell responded to a reporter’s question about Scott’s criticism by saying she was “willing to debate him in Spanish,” but did not elaborate.

US Senator Rick Scott. (Photo by Getty Images)

“Stop lying, Rick,” Mucarsel-Powell said. “Let’s discuss things in Spanish. Are you afraid of that? Because the only person who will fight for freedom and democracy in Latin America is me, not you.”

A Mucarsel-Powell team aide later told the Phoenix that staff had been in talks with several Florida television stations about scheduling one or more possible debates. The aide went on to say that Mucarsel-Powell “would love to debate in both English and Spanish.”

Mucarsel-Powell was born in Ecuador and is fluent in Spanish. Scott also speaks Spanish and has been doing Spanish-language television commercials for years.

If a debate is scheduled, the announcement would likely come in the first weeks of September. The first debate between Scott and then-Democratic incumbent Bill Nelson in 2018 was announced on September 10 of that year.

This debate was the only one that took place, and it was held in the Miramar studio of Spanish-language broadcaster Telemundo. A second debate was planned in Tampa and was to be broadcast nationally on CNN, but never took place, with both candidates blaming each other for the cancellation.

The Rick Scott campaign team did not respond to a request for comment.

The race is getting closer

In the 2022 U.S. Senate race, Republican incumbent Marco Rubio and Democratic candidate Val Demings participated in only one televised debate, which aired three weeks before Election Day.

The latest opinion polls show the race tightening. A Public Policy Polling poll released Tuesday showed Scott leading by three percentage points, 46% to 43%, with 10% undecided. A Florida Atlantic University poll released earlier this month showed Scott leading by 4%, 47% to 43%. An Associated Industries of Florida poll also released earlier this month showed Scott leading by 10%, 52% to 42%.

Other candidates in the race include Libertarian Feena Bonoan, independents Ben Everidge and Tuan TQ Nguyen, and write-in candidate Howard Knepper.

The deadline for election officials to send mail-in ballots to overseas residents and military personnel is September 21. Domestic mail-in ballots will be sent to voters starting September 26.

You may also like...