The debate is now under way and Newsom has addressed the question likely on the minds of many Americans: what are the governors doing on the debate stage?
“I’m here to tell the truth about the Biden-Harris record and also compare and contrast. Ron DeSantis, his record and the Republican Party’s record as a point of contrast, that’s as different as daylight and darkness,” he said, arguing DeSantis wants to rollback voting rights, civil rights, LGBTQ rights and women’s rights.”
The debate is scheduled to kick off in just a few minutes with the governors taking the stage at 9pm ET. It will be broadcast on the Fox News channel as well as Fox News radio and will be streamed on the Fox News website.
The debate comes as DeSantis, once considered a strong contender for the White House, has fallen far behind Donald Trump even in his own state.
The Florida governor is trailing Trump by 39 points (60-21) among Republican voters in the Sunshine state, according to a study by the University of North Florida (UNF) released earlier this month. DeSantis’s popularity has also plunged nationally.
“Despite historically high approval in the polls, Governor DeSantis losing steam in his home state doesn’t bode well for his national campaign,” Michael Binder, a professor of political science at UNF and director of its public opinion research lab, told the Guardian.
Why are Newsom and DeSantis debating?
The unorthodox debate between Newsom, a Biden surrogate who insists he isn’t running for president, and DeSantis, a hard-right candidate competing against Donald Trump, follows a longstanding rivalry.
The governors have frequently clashed on everything from the Covid responses in their respective states to education and immigration and … hair gel. Earlier this year Newsom seemingly threatened DeSantis with kidnapping charges after Florida abandoned groups of people seeking asylum in California.
Newsom first challenged DeSantis to a debate in 2022 and the Florida governor accepted this summer as polls showed him far behind Trump in the Republican primaries.
Hey @GovRonDeSantis, clearly you're struggling, distracted, and busy playing politics with people’s lives. Since you have only one overriding need -- attention --let's take this up & debate. I’ll bring my hair gel. You bring your hairspray. Name the time before Election Day. @CNN https://t.co/vTJHQxfArW
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) September 16, 2022
The event will give Newsom the opportunity to boost Biden’s policies ahead of the election while elevating his own profile nationally. A DeSantis advisor told Politico that the debate is a “great chance to showcase why the governor is the best candidate to beat the Democrats in November regardless of who they put up.”
“There’s a lot at stake here, and there’s a lot at stake because these two also potentially match up in 2028,” David McCuan, a political science professor at Sonoma State University, told CBS Sacramento.
Read more on this evening’s debate here.
Good evening Guardian readers. Tonight we’ll be following the debate between California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, and Ron DeSantis, the Republican presidential candidate and Florida governor.
The pair will take the stage in Alpharetta, Georgia, shortly for a debate moderated by Sean Hannity.
The match-up is unusual given that only DeSantis is actively seeking the Oval Office. With Joe Biden running for another term, Newsom is not seeking his party’s nomination. Instead the event has been marketed as the Great Red v Blue State Debate. It’s expected to boost Newsom’s profile as a likely 2028 contender and give needed attention to DeSantis who is lagging in the polls.
Fox News has said the event will examine the governors’ “vastly different approaches” and offer insights into their political philosophies and “ambitions for the nation”.
The 90-minute debate is scheduled to start at 9pm ET.