CBS News and Congressional Black Caucus to co-host Democratic debate

Washington — CBS News and the Congressional Black Caucus Institute will co-host the 10th Democratic presidential primary debate, the Democratic National Committee announced Thursday. The debate is scheduled for February 25 at the Gaillard Center in Charleston, South Carolina. 

The debate will be streamed live on CBSN, CBS News’ 24/7 streaming news service, and Twitter will be a debate partner.

The DNC also announced its partners for the first four debates of 2020 — debates 7, 8, 9 and 10 of the campaign so far — with one in each of the four states that have the first voting contests: Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina.

In addition to partnerships with the Iowa Democratic Party, the New Hampshire Democratic Party, the Nevada Democratic Party and the South Carolina Democratic Party, the DNC announced the following partners for the first four debates of 2020. 

If the House votes to impeach President Trump, and a Senate trial keeps the Senate Democrats in Washington for the January debate, alternate arrangements have been prepared by the DNC and CNN, the sponsor of that debate.

There is a heavy schedule of debates in February, with three set to take place. The DNC notes that there were four debates in January 2008, which is the equivalent period to February 2020, since the Iowa caucuses took place on January 3, 2008. And a fifth debate took place on February 2.

Here are the details for the next debates:

• January 14: CNN, partnering with The Des Moines Register, will host the seventh debate at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa.
• February 7: ABC, in a partnership with WMUR and Apple News, will host the eighth Democratic debate, which will take place at St. Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire.
• February 19: NBC News and MSNBC host the ninth Democratic debate in Las Vegas, Nevada, partnering with The Nevada Independent. 
• February 25: CBS News and the Congressional Black Caucus Institute will co-host the tenth Democratic debate at The Gaillard Center in Charleston, South Carolina, and Twitter will be a debate partner. CBSN will stream this debate.

The debates will air live on television and will also be live streamed on digital and social media platforms, with accessible communications for deaf and disabled audiences.

Qualification criteria, format and moderators will be announced at a future date.