Harris accepts invitation for second potential debate in October

Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign on Saturday said it would accept an invitation to participate in a second debate with former President Donald Trump.

The potential debate would take place on Oct. 23 and be hosted by CNN, Harris campaign chair Jennifer O’Malley Dillon said in a statement.

“The American people deserve another opportunity to see Vice President Kamala Harris and Donald Trump debate before they cast their ballots,” O’Malley Dillon said, adding, “Donald Trump should have no problem agreeing to this debate. It is the same format and setup as the CNN debate he attended and said he won in June, when he praised CNN’s moderators, rules, and ratings.”

The statement came one day after Harris told supporters at an event in Georgia that “I’m trying to get another debate. We’ll see.”

A spokesperson for CNN did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In response to a request for comment on the Harris campaign’s Saturday statement, Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung pointed to a Truth Social post in which the former president wrote, “THERE WILL BE NO THIRD DEBATE!”

“We just don’t think it’s necessary,” Trump said in an interview earlier this month with Telemundo Arizona, which is also owned by NBC Universal.

On Saturday, at a rally in Wilmington, North Carolina, Trump echoed those comments, telling attendees, "The problem with another debate is that it’s just too late. Voting is already started."

O’Malley Dillon’s statement comes after Trump and Harris met for their first debate on Sept. 10, which was hosted by ABC.

Though it was the first debate between the two major-party nominees for president, Trump also debated President Joe Biden on CNN in June, when Biden was still in the race.

An Oct. 23 debate would pit Trump and Harris against each other less than two weeks before Election Day, but weeks into early voting in multiple states.