Bredesen agrees to 4 debates; Blackburn ‘still finalizing’

NASHVILLE — Tennessee Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Phil Bredesen announced on Monday he has agreed to a series of four debates — three televised — to be held across the state, starting in September at Rhodes College in Memphis.

It was followed by a statement from Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn’s Senate campaign confirming she plans to debate Bredesen but is still setting a schedule.

“We’re still finalizing our debate schedule, but we look forward to debating Phil Bredesen,” Blackburn spokeswoman Abbi Sigler said. “We’re pleased to see he is willing to participate in debates.”

Bredesen, former governor of Tennessee, agreed to a debate schedule that would kick off Sept. 13 in Memphis hosted by Rhodes College, the USA TODAY NETWORK - Tennessee and WMC-TV, the Memphis NBC affiliate.

“I want this campaign to be about ideas because that’s what Tennesseans expect from their leaders,” Bredesen said in a statement. “I’m applying for the job as U.S. Senator. These debates will give me the opportunity to show how we can take on the tough problems in Washington and work together to get things done.”

The next three debates that Bredesen has agreed to are:

❚ Sept. 25 at Cumberland University, also co-sponsored by the USA TODAY NETWORK - Tennessee. Other partners include Nashville Public Television, WTVF-TV NewsChannel5 and the League of Women Voters of Tennessee.

❚ Oct. 1 at the Tivoli Theatre in Chattanooga, sponsored by the Chattanooga Times Free Press. No television partner has been announced for this debate.

❚ Oct. 10 at the University of Tennessee’s Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy in Knoxville. The Knoxville debate would be co-sponsored by Nexstar Media Group, including WKRN-TV (Nashville), WATE-TV (Knoxville), WATN-TV (Memphis), WJHL-TV (Tri Cities), and WJKT-TV (Jackson).

It’s unclear whether other organizations or media groups have invited the candidates to other televised debates.

The debates in the high-profile Blackburn-Bredesen race would mark the first televised debates in a Tennessee U.S. Senate race since 2006, when Republican Bob Corker defeated Democrat Harold Ford Jr. It was the last time Tennessee had a competitive Senate race.

In 2014, Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tennessee, took part in one candidate forum against Democratic challenger Gordon Ball. The event was in Cookeville and was not televised live despite Ball’s call for a televised primetime debate. Alexander easily defeated Ball in the election.

The general election in this year’s U.S. Senate race is Nov. 6.