ST. LOUIS – Wednesday brought big news in the race for Missouri’s U.S. Senate seat race. FOX 2 will be hosting the only debate between Republican incumbent Josh Hawley and Democratic candidate Lucas Kunce.
“Debate night in Missouri, the Race for the U.S. Senate” is set for 7 p.m. on Halloween night, Oct. 31. It will be broadcast live across the state on Missouri Nexstar stations.
The two candidates were already sparring in interviews after the announcement.
They’d been saying they wanted to debate for months, creating quite a spectacle when they clashed face-to-face at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia in August.
At last, they agreed Wednesday to debate just five days before November’s general election.
“I think the pressure’s finally gotten to him,” Kunce said. “We’re really excited. We’ve been talking about it a lot—how Missouri voters deserve to the contrast between the two of us.”
“I hope that he’ll show up,” Hawley said. “I’m grateful for them being willing to do it. They’d also offered to broadcast our debate at the state fair.”
Our new Emerson College, The Hill, Nexstar, poll that was released this week shows Hawley with an 11-point lead, but even he suspects the race is closer.
The two campaigns have dominated media airwaves with ads.
Hawley says Kunce misrepresents his position on IVF and abortion exceptions, which Hawley says he supports both.
Kunce says Hawley misrepresented his position on mandates for electric vehicles. A Hawley ad claims Kunce wants to take away Missourians pickup trucks, which Kunce says is blatantly false.
“This is what a man who’s afraid does,” Kunce said. “A man who’s afraid doesn’t debate or delays until the last second debate. They run lies about their opponent on TV, and that’s what he’s doing.”
“I’m glad folks will have a chance to see both of us and hear my opponent defend his nutty positions, like, for instance, is he actually going to support Kamala Harris (for President)? This is a question he has yet to answer,” Hawley said.
As for endorsing Kamala Harris for president, Kunce says he doesn’t think it’s any of his business to tell someone else how to vote in another race. Hawley is likely to bring it up again when the two men meet in St. Louis at FOX 2 on Halloween night.
