Weston Wamp and Chuck FleischmannU.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann and the Republican primary challenger Weston Wamp have agreed to a debate July 2.
The debate in the 3rd Congressional District race will be hosted by the Chattanooga Times Free Press and WTCI-PBS, Chattanooga's public television station. Times Free Press Business Editor Dave Flessner, who's also a panelist on WTCI's Tennessee Insider political show, will moderate the debate.
The debate will be held at the WTCI studio at 2 p.m. on July 2, and viewers can watch it broadcast at 8 p.m. on timesfreepress.com or wtciTV.org.
"It's our mission to inform viewers about the issues that matter in their lives, and we believe the community's daily newspaper and the community's PBS station are a perfect fit in making this a reality," said Paul Grove, President and CEO of WTCI.
Starting today, members of the public can submit questions to the candidates. Questions tagged #tn3rd on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram will be among those considered for use during the debate. People also may email suggested questions to news@timesfreepress.com. Other questions will come from Times Free Press and WTCI staff members.
"We're all aware of the ways social media has changed public engagement, and we're asking the public to collaborate with us to make this debate even better," said Times Free Press Editor Alison Gerber.
After the primary election, WTCI and the Times Free Press plan to invite eligible candidates to participate in a general election debate as the November election approaches.