The Wisconsin Broadcasters Association Foundation has canceled its planned Oct. 9 gubernatorial debate after both major-party nominees did not accept invitations, ending a decades-long tradition of WBA-sponsored general-election debates in statewide races.
The foundation said legal precedent requires more than one participating candidate for it to air a debate. Two invitations went out, but both were not accepted.
The WBA Foundation, working with the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association, first hosted a televised gubernatorial debate in 1990 and has staged one in every subsequent Wisconsin gubernatorial and U.S. Senate contest. Stations across the state have long carried those events. The foundation said it still hopes to host a U.S. Senate debate in 2028.
The only confirmed debate in the 2026 governor’s race is now the WISN-TV event on Wednesday, Oct. 21, at 7 p.m. Democratic Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley and Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany have agreed to that forum. Other ABC affiliates, including WKOW in Madison, plan to carry it.
Early in-person voting begins Oct. 20, a day before the debate, ahead of the Nov. 3 general election.
The two campaigns have not committed earlier to other proposed events, including a WTMJ-TV town hall floated for Oct. 8. Multiple debates have become uncommon in recent Wisconsin statewide races; the 2022 gubernatorial contest featured only one.
