Does the Tammy Baldwin-Eric Hovde debate take place after voting begins in Wisconsin?

Many eyes were recently on the debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, but there’s another debate coming up in Wisconsin.

That’s the one between Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin and Republican challenger Eric Hovde, scheduled for Oct. 18. It will be hosted by WMTV in Madison and aired throughout Wisconsin.

After the debate was announced, Hovde pushed Baldwin to participate in two more debates that he’s agreed to, in Milwaukee and Green Bay. And now, he’s arguing the debate happens after voting starts. 

"Typically you have three to four debates in a U.S. Senate race. She's given me one debate, almost a month after early voting has started," Hovde said in a NewsNation interview on Sept. 3, 2024.

Let’s tackle this claim in two parts. 

First, has Baldwin agreed to fewer debates than normal for a U.S. Senate race in Wisconsin?

And second, does the debate take place almost a month after early voting has started in Wisconsin?

PolitiFact Wisconsin contacted the Hovde campaign for backup, and spokesman Ben Voelkel cited examples of debates from past U.S. Senate cycles in Wisconsin.

The most recent Senate race was in 2022, between Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson and Democratic challenger Mandela Barnes. 

Johnson agreed to up to three debates, and Barnes accepted two. Those took place Oct. 7 and Oct. 13, so slightly earlier than the Baldwin-Hovde debate but in the same time frame.

In 2018, when Baldwin faced Republican opponent Leah Vukmir, there were three debates: Oct. 8, Oct. 13 and Oct. 19. 

In 2016, Johnson and Democratic challenger Russ Feingold participated in two debates: Oct. 14 and Oct. 18.

In 2012, during Baldwin’s first run for Senate against former Gov. Tommy Thompson, there were three debates: Sept. 28, Oct. 18 and Oct. 26. So, in that race, a much wider time range than other cycles.

It looks as if between two and three debates is normal in recent Senate races in Wisconsin. Hovde is on the mark when he says three is typical, but four goes a little too far. 

PolitiFact Wisconsin contacted Baldwin’s campaign for a response, and they cited only the two debates in the 2022 Johnson-Barnes race.

They also noted there was only one debate between Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and Republican challenger Tim Michels in 2022. That debate took place on Oct. 14. 

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Baldwin campaign spokesman Andrew Mamo sent a statement similar to one earlier this year, noting Baldwin "travels the state constantly" to meet Wisconsinites and the debate "will air in every region of the state."

So, it doesn’t look as if more debates between Baldwin and Hovde will be added. 

Now, let’s consider the second part of Hovde’s claim: Does the Oct. 18 debate take place "almost a month" after early voting starts in Wisconsin?

Early voting is another name for in-person absentee voting, which can take place in Wisconsin from Oct. 22 through Nov. 3.

Early voting involves going to your clerk’s office or another designated location and casting an absentee ballot in-person, before the election. 

It’s up to each city, village or town to decide how many dates, times and locations to offer early voting.   

Early voting cannot start more than two weeks before the election, according to the Wisconsin Elections Commission. That date in 2024 — Oct. 22 — is after the Oct. 18 debate, and definitely not almost a month before the debate. 

But the full picture is a little more complicated. There’s still a way for voters to cast their ballots — voting absentee by mail — before the Oct. 18 debate. 

Hovde’s campaign cited the deadline to send out absentee ballots in federal elections. The state deadline is even earlier, Sept. 19, and clerks are told to mail absentee ballots as soon as they’re available. 

Clerks must send absentee ballots to voters with active requests by that deadline, and voters will start receiving them soon after. 

Certainly some voters will receive ballots by the Oct. 18 debate, though whether voters will get them in the mail a month before the debate is hard to predict. 

Voters could choose to fill out their ballot and return it immediately. But "spoiling" ballots — essentially taking your ballot back and voting a different way — is no longer allowed in Wisconsin. 

So, if a voter submits their ballot then changes their mind after the Baldwin-Hovde debate, there’s no reversing that vote. 

And again, the Oct. 18 debate doesn’t take place later than normal in Wisconsin — that falls in the same time frame as past election cycles.

Hovde said, "Typically, you have three to four debates in a U.S. Senate race. (But Baldwin has) given me one debate, almost a month after early voting has started."

Baldwin agreed to three debates in her previous campaigns for Senate, though some recent statewide races have had two. Hovde is on par with three, but saying there’s typically four debates is a stretch. 

The debate does not start before in-person absentee voting in Wisconsin, also known as early voting. But some voters could still receive, complete and return absentee ballots before the debate, so that portion of his claim does have merit. 

Our definition of Mostly True is "the statement is accurate but needs clarification or additional information."

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