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The IssueThe presidential debates -- the single most important electoral events -- should provide voters with an opportunity to see the popular candidates discussing important issues in an unscripted manner. Unfortunately, the presidential debates often fail to do so, because the major party candidates secretly control them.Presidential debates were run by the civic-minded League of Women Voters until 1988, when the national Republican and Democratic parties seized control of the debates by establishing the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD). Posing as a nonpartisan institution, the CPD has deceptively run the debates in the interests of the national Republican and Democratic parties, not the American people. Since 1988, negotiators for the Republican and Democratic nominees have secretly drafted debate contracts that dictate how the presidential debates will be structured. The CPD, which is co-chaired by the former heads of the Republican and Democratic parties, has implemented those contracts. CPD control of the debates has harmed our democracy. Candidates that voters want to see are often excluded, and restrictive formats allow candidates to avoid debating and to instead exchange memorized soundbites. Walter Cronkite called CPD-sponsored debates an "unconscionable fraud." Open Debates informs the public, the news media and policy makers about the antidemocratic conduct of the CPD. It also promotes an alternative presidential debate sponsor - the nonpartisan Citizens' Debate Commission - which is comprised of civic leaders committed to voter education. Related Links
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