U.S. Sen. Angus King will debate Republican Demi Kouzounas and Democrat David Costello in the first of two debates in their Nov. 5 election, which also features independent Jason Cherry.
The candidates will meet at an hourlong debate at 7 p.m. hosted by CBS News 13 and the Bangor Daily News. You can watch it on TV in the Portland media market, while others can stream it on the social media channels of the two news outlets.
King, a former independent governor who caucuses with Democrats in the Senate, is running for his third term after coming out of political retirement in 2012 to win the seat vacated by Republican Olympia Snowe. The 80-year-old would be the oldest Mainer to ever serve in the Senate just a few months into his next term.
He is heavily favored in the Nov. 5 election. His biggest challenge will be Kouzounas, a former Maine Republican Party chair and retired dentist from Saco who entered the race earlier this year at the urging of U.S. Sen. Susan Collins. Her active campaign has included a trip to the southern border but looks unlikely to expand on her base of stalwart Republicans.
Costello, whose resume includes a run for the 2nd Congressional District in 2002 and time working overseas for the U.S. government and as an aide to a former Maryland governor, is running on a progressive platform. He has polled in the high single digits so far.
Cherry, a former FBI agent from Unity, is also on the ballot but will not participate in the debate because he did not meet a requirement that candidates reach at least 5 percent support in a public and independent poll of the election.
The second and final debate, which will feature all four candidates, will be hosted by News Center Maine and the Maine State Chamber of Commerce at 7 p.m. Wednesday.
