Organizing The Presidential Debates

October 22, 2012 in Daily Bulletin

Before the Presidential debates, the two candidates’ campaigns signed a memorandum of understanding that outlined the rules that would govern the debate. As we go into the third and final debate, Centives decided to look at the more interesting highlights from the agreement:

  • The chairs that the candidates will be sitting on tonight will be swivel chairs that can be locked into a certain position.
  • During debates when the candidates are seated at tables, a coin is flipped to decide which individual sits on which side.
  • The governor of the state that the debate is held in is guaranteed a ticket to the event.
  • The Commission organizing the debates is required to “maintain an appropriate temperature as agreed to by the campaigns.”
  • Several provisions of the agreement have been violated by both candidates. They include:
    • Candidates aren’t allowed to ask each other direct questions.
    • During the town hall debate, the two candidates had their own designated space that they were allowed to move around in, and they weren’t allowed to violate each other’s territory.

You can find the full agreement here.

Via: BBC, Time