Short And Sweet Opener To The Season's Debates

With just two days until the first presidential debate, pundits, the media, and the American people are gearing up for what could be one heck of a show. So as the nation prepares for the event, many may want to know how much time to allot for the debate. So how long is the first presidential debate? The highly-anticipated event will run 90 minutes and without commercials.

And not only is the first debate set to last an hour and a half, but so are the two subsequent debates, which are scheduled to take place after the Hofstra University debate. The first debate, which will air on Sept. 26, will be divided into six segments, with each segment lasting approximately 15 minutes. For anyone who has ever watched the pugnacious Trump during the Republican primaries, he has often pushed the time allotted for segment questions during some heated spars with his opponents. And in this highly-charged climate between Clinton and Trump, you can bet on some similarly heated exchanges during the debate, although Clinton's press secretary, Brian Fallon, has said that she will not be trying to "provoke" or elicit an outburst from Trump during the anticipated event.

The debate, which is scheduled to take place from 9 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. ET, can be viewed from several major networks. Moderator Lester Holt will start each segment with a question, and each candidate will have two minutes to respond. Afterward, candidates will have an opportunity to respond to each other and Holt will have to fill the remainder of the time, if there is any, with follow-up questions.

There are also some online campaigns asking to support specific issues in the hopes that the moderator will bring that issue to the debate floor. One such organization, known as Thunderclap, is asking for people to support an online campaign about national debt and the outlining of a fiscal plan, with the hashtag #AskForAPlan.

The role of the moderator has taken special prominence in this year's campaign, with hosts such as Matt Lauer and Megyn Kelly, getting criticized for their questioning with Trump during debates held during the primaries. And with a high-profile event such as the first Trump-versus-Clinton debate, you can expect that extra preparation and precaution will go into the moderator's planning for the network event.

All major networks will be airing the debate, and there will also be ways to view the debate online.