# 2000 United States presidential debates

The 2000 United States presidential debates were a series of debates held during the 2000 presidential election.
The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), a bipartisan organization formed in 1987, organized four debates among the major party candidates, sponsored three presidential debates and one vice presidential debate. Only Democratic nominee Al Gore and Republican nominee George W. Bush met the criteria for inclusion in the debates, and thus were the only two to appear in the debates sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates. The CPD-sponsored vice presidential debate took place between their respective vice presidential running mates, Joe Lieberman and Dick Cheney.

## Debate schedule

| No. | Date & time | Host | Location | Moderator | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants |
| Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Democratic | Republican |
| Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Vice President Al Gore of Tennessee | Governor George W. Bush of Texas |
| 1 | Tuesday, October 3, 2000 9:00 – 10:30 p.m. EDT | University of Massachusetts | Boston, Massachusetts | Jim Lehrer of PBS | P | P |
| 2 | Wednesday, October 11, 2000 9:00 – 10:30 p.m. EDT | Wake Forest University | Winston-Salem, North Carolina | Jim Lehrer of PBS | P | P |
| 3 | Tuesday, October 17, 2000 9:00 – 10:30 p.m. EDT | Washington University in St. Louis | St. Louis, Missouri | Jim Lehrer of PBS | P | P |
| 2000 United States vice presidential debate ||||||||||||||||
| No. | Date & time | Host | Location | Moderator | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants | Participants |
| Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Democratic | Republican |
| Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Key: P Participant   N Non-invitee | Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut | Secretary Dick Cheney of Wyoming |
| VP | Thursday, October 5, 2000 9:00 – 10:30 p.m. EDT | Centre College | Danville, Kentucky | Bernard Shaw of CNN | P | P |

## Participant selection

In 2000, the following eight candidates achieved ballot access in enough states to mathematically win the election via the Electoral College:
| Presidential candidate | Party | Ballot access |
| George W. Bush | Republican | 50+DC |
| Al Gore | Democratic | 50+DC |
| Harry Browne | Libertarian | 49+DC |
| Pat Buchanan | Reform | 49 |
| Ralph Nader | Green | 43+DC |
| Howard Phillips | Constitution | 41 |
| John Hagelin | Natural Law | 38 |
Responding to criticism received from the exclusion of Ross Perot in the 1996 campaign, the Commission on Presidential Debates adjusted the criteria used to invite candidates, announcing on January 6, 2000 that third-party candidates would have to reach 15 percent in pre-debate polls to receive an invitation.
Only Governor George W. Bush and Vice President Al Gore met the CPD selection criteria for any of the presidential debates. As a result, only Dick Cheney and Joe Lieberman met the criteria for the vice presidential debate.
Bush initially refused to participate in all three CPD debates, instead proposing that he and Gore meet for just one CPD-sponsored debate, and another two debates of one hour each, hosted on Meet the Press and Larry King Live. However, the Bush campaign eventually assented to the three Commission-scheduled debates.

## October 3: First presidential debate (University of Massachusetts Boston)

The first presidential debate between Vice President Al Gore and Governor George W. Bush took place on Tuesday, October 3, 2000, in the Clark Athletic Center on the campus of the University of Massachusetts Boston in Boston, Massachusetts.
The debate was moderated by Jim Lehrer of PBS' The NewsHour, who posed the questions for each candidate.

### Transcript

* Debate transcript from the Commission on Presidential Debates website.

### Viewership

An estimated 46.6 million viewers tuned into the debates.

## October 5: Vice presidential debate (Centre College)

The only vice presidential debate between Senator Joe Lieberman and former Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney, took place on Thursday, October 5, 2000, in the Norton Center for the Arts on the campus of Centre College in Danville, Kentucky.
The debate was moderated by Bernard Shaw of CNN, who posed the questions for each candidate. The candidates discussed issues such as Medicare, Social Security, economic issues, the surplus, the future of the U.S. military and its decline of morale, and drugs in school and education reform.
Reflecting on the debate in 2016, Lieberman called it one of his proudest moments of the campaign, citing the debate's civil tone.

### Transcript

* Debate transcript from the Commission on Presidential Debates website.

### Viewership

An estimated 28.5 million viewers tuned into the debate.

## October 11: Second presidential debate (Wake Forest University)

The second presidential debate between Vice President Al Gore, took place on Wednesday, October 11, 2000, in the Wait Chapel on the campus of the Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
The debate was moderated by Jim Lehrer of PBS' The NewsHour, who posed the questions for each candidate.

### Transcript

* Debate transcript from the Commission on Presidential Debates website.

### Viewership

An estimated 37.5 million viewers tuned into the debate.

## October 17: Third presidential debate (Washington University in St. Louis)

The third and final presidential debate between Vice President Al Gore and Governor George W. Bush, took place on Tuesday, October 17, 2000, at the Field House on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.
The town hall style debate Jim Lehrer of PBS with featuring questions asked by members of the audience.

### Transcript

* Debate transcript from the Commission on Presidential Debates website.

### Viewership

An estimated 37.7 million viewers tuned into the debate.

## Third-party debates

* September 28, 2000 – The Independence Party of Minnesota sponsored a third-party presidential debate moderated by Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura. In attendance for this debate were Libertarian candidate Harry Browne, Constitution Party candidate Howard Phillips, and Natural Law Party candidate John Hagelin. Both Ralph Nader and Pat Buchanan declined invitations to attend.
* October 20, 2000 – Judicial Watch sponsored a third-party presidential debate at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, DC, moderated by radio broadcaster Jim Bohannon. Once again, Browne, Phillips, and Hagelin participated while Nader and Buchanan declined invitations.
* November 3, 2000 – American University's Department of History and Commission on Fair Elections sponsored a third-party vice presidential debate at the National Press Club. Participating were vice presidential candidates Art Olivier of the Libertarian Party, Dr. J. Curtis Frazier of the Constitution Party, and Nat Goldhaber representing the Natural Law Party. Winona LaDuke and Ezola Foster of the Green and Reform Parties declined invitations.