The First Presidential Debate Is In New York

With less than two months to go before the general election in November, the campaigns are entering the home stretch, so naturally that means debate season is just around the corner. So, where is the first presidential debate being held? It isn't a long way from either campaign's home base.

With former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's campaign headquartered in the borough of Brooklyn, while the Republican nominee runs his operation from Manhattan, it makes a lot of logistical sense for the debates to be held somewhere close to New York City. Holding it nearby cuts down on travel costs for the candidates and their entourages, and means that they'll be able to get back onto the campaign trail as soon as possible.

The candidates will meet at Hofstra University located in the town of Hempstead on Long Island. Airing Monday, Sept. 26, 2016 from 9-10:30 pm ET, the debate will take place at a private university with a student body of about 10,000 undergraduate students. Hofstra was established in 1935 at the height of the Great Depression as a co-educational non-profit university, and today is one of the leading schools in the New York metro area.

This isn't the first time that this location has been used as the setting for a presidential debate in recent memory. In 2012, this same location was the setting for one of the Obama-Romney debates, too. The tone at this one will probably be worlds away from the comparatively wonky, detail-heavy debates from the last election cycle. While the candidates in 2012 had relatively similar temperaments, Clinton and Trump couldn't be more different in terms of bearing, composure, and executive experience.

NBC's Lester Holt will be moderating the debate; this will mark the first time that the news anchor will have had the opportunity to moderate a presidential debate. The theme of the debate is unknown.

The first of debate is scheduled for just over five weeks out from the general election. Both heritage party candidates have been traveling without a so-called "protective pool" of reporters to cover their every move, so the debates will be an important opportunity for the American people to size up the candidates and see who they'd rather have as president for the next four years.