The next event in the University of Delaware’s National Agenda speaker series will be a special election-year program, Delaware Debates, beginning at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 19, in Mitchell Hall.

Jointly hosted by UD and Delaware Public Media, the evening will feature two debates, one between candidates for governor and the other between candidates for Delaware’s only seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Doors will open at 6 p.m., and everyone must be seated by 6:30 p.m.

The first debate of the evening will feature the major party candidates for governor, Delaware state Sen. Colin Bonini, a Republican, and current U.S. Rep. John Carney, a Democrat. The gubernatorial race is for an open position, with Gov. Jack Markell prohibited by state law from seeking a third term.

The congressional event will follow, with Democrat Lisa Blunt Rochester and Republican Hans Reigle debating. The race for Delaware’s seat in the House of Representatives also has no incumbent, as Carney chose not to seek re-election and instead run for governor.

The debates are free and open to the public, but tickets are required and are now available. No tickets will be distributed after Tuesday, Oct. 18. For information on how to obtain tickets, visit this website.

Both debates will be moderated by Nancy Karibjanian, a veteran broadcast journalist recently named director of the University’s Center for Political Communication.

Organizers of the debates give students from UD and Delaware State University the opportunity to suggest questions for the candidates. The form to submit a question for consideration is available online; the deadline is Friday, Oct. 14.

About the series

The 2016 National Agenda series, “Road to the Presidency,” features a wide variety of speakers discussing issues surrounding the presidential election.

All events are free and open to the public and held on Wednesday evenings in Mitchell Hall from 7:30-9 p.m.

The next speaker in the series, scheduled for Nov. 2, will be former Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., who from 2003-07 was Maryland’s first Republican governor in 36 years.