DENVER – Colorado’s eight gubernatorial candidates will get what is likely to be their final chance to convince primary voters they are the right candidate when Denver7 and The Denver Post moderate debates between the candidates on June 18 and 19, which will be hosted by the University of Denver.
The debates will be moderated by Denver7’s Anne Trujillo and The Denver Post’s John Frank. All eight candidates have confirmed they will be attending.
The Democratic debates will take place on Monday, June 18 and will include former state Sen. Mike Johnston, former State Treasurer Cary Kennedy, Lt. Gov. Donna Lynne and Rep. Jared Polis.
The Republican debates are set for Tuesday, June 19 and will include former Parker Mayor Greg Lopez, former state Rep. Victor Mitchell, businessman Doug Robinson, and current State Treasurer Walker Stapleton.
Both debates are slated for 90 minutes each: the first 60 minutes of both debates will air on Denver7 from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. and will be streamed on TheDenverChannel.com, Denver7’s Facebook page, DenverPost.com and the University of Denver’s website.
After the first hour, the remaining 30 minutes will be streamed online only on TheDenverChannel.com, Denver7’s Facebook page, DenverPost.com and the University of Denver’s website.
Candidates will get 30 seconds to introduce themselves, and there will be three categories of questions: candidate-specific questions, yes-or-no questions, and questions from the public.
Each candidate will get 60 seconds to respond to questions aimed at them. If they are attacked or called out, they will get about 30 second to respond, but the time allotted will be at the discretion of the moderators.
The candidates have already taken part in several debates put on by other Colorado news organizations, but the Denver7-Denver Post debate is expected to be the last one before the final votes are cast on June 26.
More information about the debates will be released in coming days.
