1976 United States presidential debates

In 1976 only the two candidates from the major political parties, Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, were invited. As a result, only Bob Dole and Walter Mondale met the criteria for the vice presidential debate.

Three presidential debates were scheduled by the League of Women Voters:

1. September 23 at the Walnut Street Theater, with questions from moderator Edwin Newman of NBC;
2. October 6 at the Palace of Fine Arts, with questions from moderator Pauline Frederick of NPR;
3. October 22 at the College of William & Mary, with questions from moderator Barbara Walters of ABC;

One vice-presidential debate was held:

• October 15 at the Alley Theatre, moderated by James Hoge of Chicago Sun Times.

{{Infobox debate

|title=First presidential debate

|logo_image=

|logo_size=150

|image=Carter and Ford in a debate, September 23, 1976.jpg

|caption=

|duration=90 minutes

|date={{start date|1976|09|23}}

|venue=Walnut Street Theater

|location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

|participants=Gerald Ford
Jimmy Carter

|url=

|moderator=Edwin Newman of NBC

|transcript=

|fact_checking=

|website=}}

The first presidential debate between President Gerald Ford and former Governor Jimmy Carter took place on Thursday, September 23, 1976, in the Walnut Street Theater in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The debate was moderated by Edwin Newman of NBC moderated the debate with a panel consisting of Elizabeth Drew, Frank Reynolds and James Gannon posed the questions to each candidate.

This was the first presidential debate in 16 years. Eighty-one minutes into the broadcast of the 90 minute debate, the sound was lost and the debate was paused for 27 minutes before the problem was fixed and the debate could resume.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/09/24/archives/sound-of-debate-is-off-air-for-27-minutes-debates-sound-goes-off.html|title = Sound of Debate is off Air for 27 Minutes|newspaper = The New York Times|date = September 24, 1976}}

• [http://www.debates.org/index.php?page=september-23-1976-debate-transcript] from the Commission on Presidential Debates website.

An estimated 69.7 million viewers tuned into the debates.

{{clear}}

{{Infobox debate

|title=Second presidential debate

|logo_image=

|logo_size=150

|image=

|caption=

|duration=90 minutes

|date={{start date|1976|10|06}}

|venue=Palace of Fine Arts

|location=San Francisco, California

|participants=Gerald Ford
Jimmy Carter

|url=

|moderator=Pauline Frederick of NPR

|transcript=

|fact_checking=

|website=}}

The second presidential debate between President Gerald Ford and former Governor Jimmy Carter took place on Wednesday, October 6, 1976, at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, California.

The debate was moderated by Pauline Frederick of NPR, who posed the questions for each candidate. The debate is infamous for President Ford's gaffe, "There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe and there never will be under a Ford administration."{{Cite web |last=Graham |first=David A. |date=August 2, 2016 |title=The Myth of Gerald Ford's Fatal 'Soviet Domination' Gaffe |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/08/the-myth-of-gerald-fords-disastrous-soviet-domination-gaffe/493958/ |access-date=October 16, 2023 |website=The Atlantic |language=en}}

• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fj5A38gKHfk] from PBS NewsHour via YouTube.

• [http://www.debates.org/index.php?page=october-6-1976-debate-transcript] from the Commission on Presidential Debates website.

An estimated 63.9 million viewers tuned into the debate.

{{clear}}

{{Infobox debate

|title=Vice presidential debate

|logo_image=

|logo_size=150

|image=

|caption=

|duration=75 minutes

|date={{start date|1976|10|15}}

|venue=Alley Theatre

|location=Houston, Texas

|participants=Bob Dole
Walter Mondale

|url=

|moderator=James Hoge of Chicago Sun-Times

|transcript=

|fact_checking=

|website=}}

The only vice presidential debate between Senator Bob Dole and Senator Walter Mondale took place on Friday, October 15, 1976, in the Alley Theatre in Houston, Texas. It was the first vice presidential debate in American history.[http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=62249 Vice Presidential Debate in Houston, Texas | The American Presidency Project]{{Cite web|url=https://time.com/4511710/vice-presidential-debate-history/|title=Here's What Happened at the First-Ever VP Debate|date=October 4, 2016 }}

James Hoge of Chicago Sun-Times posed the questions for each candidate.

• [http://janda.org/politxts/Presidential%20debates/debates.76/vp-76.html]

An estimated 43.2 million viewers tuned into the debate.

{{clear}}

{{Infobox debate

|title=Third presidential debate

|logo_image=

|logo_size=150

|image=

|caption=

|duration=90 minutes

|date={{start date|1976|10|22}}

|venue=Phi Beta Kappa Memorial Hall at the College of William & Mary

|location=Williamsburg, Virginia

|participants=Gerald Ford
Jimmy Carter

|url=

|moderator=Barbara Walters of ABC

|transcript=

|fact_checking=

|website=}}

The third and final presidential debate between President Gerald Ford and former Governor Jimmy Carter took place on Friday, October 22, 1976, in the Phi Beta Kappa Memorial Hall at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia.

The debate was moderated by Barbara Walters of ABC, who posed the questions for each candidate.

• [http://www.debates.org/index.php?page=october-22-1976-debate-transcript] from the Commission on Presidential Debates website.

An estimated 62.7 million viewers tuned into the debates.

• Gerald Ford 1976 presidential campaign
• Jimmy Carter 1976 presidential campaign
• 1976 United States presidential election

{{reflist}}

{{United States presidential debates}}

{{1976 United States presidential election}}

{{Gerald Ford}}

{{Jimmy Carter}}

{{Walter Mondale}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:United States Presidential Election Debates, 1976}}

1976

Debates

Category:1976 in American television