Gubernatorial candidates Wes Moore and Dan Cox have agreed to a televised debate in mid-October in the wake of Cox’s allegations that Moore was avoiding squaring off publicly against his opponent.
“I am glad Wes Moore has finally accepted an invitation to debate with me,” Republican Cox said in a statement Thursday morning. “I look forward to letting the voters of Maryland see the candidates live, in person and unfiltered.”
The pair will go head-to-head Oct. 12 in a televised debate hosted by Maryland Public Television and WBAL-TV, an NBC affiliate.
Moore’s campaign told The Baltimore Sun on Aug. 26 that he would be participating, but could not confirm the date.
“I look forward to the opportunity this October to contrast my vision and values with Dan Cox’s far-right agenda,” Democrat Moore said in a statement Wednesday.
A moderator has not been announced.
Cox, a 2020 presidential election denier endorsed by former President Donald Trump, said Thursday morning that Moore has “refused or declined to respond to several requests,” including an invitation to a forum at Morgan State University, one of Maryland’s historically black colleges and universities.
Morgan State’s student-run news organization, The Spokesman, invited Cox and Moore to participate in a forum moderated by NBC News correspondent Antonia Hylton on Sept. 27. Moore, who enjoys a Democrat voter registration edge in deep-blue Maryland and is outraising Cox, reportedly declined.
It’s unknown whether the candidates will appear in other forums ahead of the Nov. 8 election.
