Republican Candidates for U.S. Senate to Debate at UConn June 14

The debate will be streamed live at noon by Courant.com and CTnow.com, and aired on FOX CT at 7 p.m.

Fox CT/Hartford Courant/UConn 2012 Senate Debate logo

Fox CT/Hartford Courant/UConn 2012 Senate Debate logo

2012 Senate debate logo.The leading Republican candidates running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Joe Lieberman will debate at the University of Connecticut’s Storrs campus on June 14 at noon.

The hour-long debate between Linda McMahon and Chris Shays will be streamed live on  Courant.com and CTnow.com and can be seen again on FOX CT at 7 p.m. The debate is sponsored by the Hartford Courant and FOX CT.

The debate will take place at von der Mehden Recital Hall. A limited number of seats for the debate will be available to the UConn community only.

McMahon won the state GOP nomination for the U.S. Senate when she captured 60 percent of the votes at the party’s nominating convention on May 18. Former U.S. Rep. Shays earned 32 percent of the endorsement votes, more than double the amount required to force a GOP primary on Aug. 14.

This is the second U.S. Senate debate to take place in Storrs this year. In April, Democratic candidates Susan Bysiewicz, Chris Murphy, Matthew Oakes, William Tong, and Lee Whitnum participated in a separate debate sponsored by the Courant and FOX CT.

“As the state’s flagship public university, UConn needs to be front and center when it comes to discussions about politics and public policy in Connecticut,” said UConn President Susan Herbst, whose academic field is political science and communications. “We’re thrilled to be hosting this debate and are looking forward to hosting the candidates on campus.”

Rich Graziano, vice president and general manager of FOX CT/WCCT-TV and publisher, president & CEO of the Hartford Courant, said, “Debates are important to the political process. It is our role to inform society, and this is one of the many ways that we try to help voters assess candidates for office. We are honored to be holding Senate debates with the University of Connecticut.”

If you would like to attend the June 14 debate:
You must be a UConn student, faculty, or staff member.
You must register with the Office of University Events by June 13.
Register by emailing rsvp@uconn.edu or calling 860-486-1038.
Names will be checked at the door. If you do not register, you will not be allowed into the venue.
If there is a question you would like to have asked as part of the debate, please send it to opinion@courant.com by June 13 for consideration.

Audience seats will be available to UConn students, faculty, and staff only on June 14. Seating at the event is limited and will be decided on a first-come, first-served basis.

Anyone interested in attending must register with the Office of University Events by June 13. Members of the UConn community can register by emailing rsvp@uconn.edu or calling 860-486-1038.

UConn IDs will be checked at the door. If you do not register, you will not be allowed into the venue.

All members of the audience must be in their seats at least 20 minutes before the debate starts, and must remain in their seats until the event ends.

Since the debate is being taped for television, audience members must abide by specific ground rules. These rules of attendance – outlined below – will be strictly enforced. Anyone not complying with the rules of the event will not be able to attend.

The rules of attendance are as follows:

  • Audience members may not get up and down or speak during the live taping.
  • The use of laptops, cell phones, cameras, or any other electronic device during the taping is prohibited.
  • Signs, placards, cards, and other campaign materials are prohibited within the auditorium.
  • 2-inch candidate campaign buttons are permitted.
  • Audience members are asked to refrain from applauding or in other ways demonstrating support for or opposition to a candidate during the debate.