CONCORD - The New Hampshire Democratic Party in partnership with the National Democratic Committee today announced the date, media sponsors and location for the DNC-sanctioned debate here in the Granite State on September 26, 2007. That debate, to be held at Dartmouth College in Hanover, is one of six DNC sponsored debates. Additional details regarding specifics for the debate including additional media partners and logistics will be announced at a later time.

"We are delighted to work with the DNC and NBC News/MSNBC to bring this debate to New Hampshire," said New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley. "This debate will give all the candidates the opportunity to appeal to the highly engaged and informed Granite State voters on a larger stage. The candidates are already beginning to see the true grassroots, retail politics and participatory democracy of New Hampshire that provides the first testing ground for candidates in one-on-one meetings that would not be possible in most states."

The DNC sanctioned debate will be held at:

Date: September 26, 2007

Media Sponsor: NBC News/MSNBC

Location: Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH

Additional details regarding specifics for the individual debates including additional media partners and logistics will be announced at a later time. The remaining five DNC-sanctioned debates will take place in Charlotte, South Carolina, on July 23; in Des Moines, Iowa, on August 19; in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on October 30; in Las Vegas, Nevada, on November 15; and in Los Angeles, California, on December 12.

NEWTON, MA – March 26, 2007 – New England Cable News, NBC News, Dartmouth College and NH Public Radio will co-sponsor debates among the Democratic and Republican candidates for president on Sept. 26 and 27, 2007 at Dartmouth College.

The debates, which will be simulcast live on MSNBC, NECN and on New Hampshire Public Radio, will be 90-minutes long and will be moderated by Tim Russert, host of NBC’s Meet the Press and Washington Bureau Chief for NBC News.

 MSNBC.com and necn.com will also stream the debates live. NECN will produce the debates.

“New Hampshire, and the nation, want to know and deserve to know where the candidates stand on the issues,’’ said Russert. “These debates will do just that. ‘’

NECN has a strong tradition of producing political debates in New Hampshire and looks forward to again providing this service to our 4 million viewers across New England, and to the rest of the nation as well, said Charles J. Kravetz, vice president of news and programming at NECN.

“We are also looking forward to working with Tim Russert, arguably one of the most well-respected political journalists in America today,’’ said Kravetz. “We’re thrilled to partner with New Hampshire Public Radio, which has enormous reach throughout the entire state of New Hampshire, and we’re delighted that the prestigious Dartmouth College will be our host.’’

The debates, which will be open to all media, will be held at Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H.

Dartmouth President James Wright said that political debates at their best provide opportunities for candidates to sharpen positions and engage issues.

"We hope this event will facilitate that process and meet a clear public need. Moreover, one of the benefits of being a Dartmouth student is that during every student's four years here, a political campaign literally extends to our front porch,'' he said. "Many students become politically engaged and a number sign on to work with one of the candidates."
 

NHPR is the only statewide radio network in New Hampshire and serves about 150,000 listeners with award winning public radio programming from NPR, PRI and APM as well as locally produced programs and outstanding news coverage.

NECN is the largest 24-hour regional news network in the country, with 3.6 million subscribers in 1,037 communities across New England.  It is a partnership of Comcast and the Hearst Corporation.

Dartmouth College, founded in 1769, is a member of the Ivy League. Dartmouth includes an undergraduate arts and sciences program and four graduate schools: Arts and Sciences Graduate Programs, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and Tuck School of Business.
 

CONTACTS:

NECN:
Doreen Vigue
617-630-5014
dvigue@necn.com
 

NBC:
Barbara Levin
212-664-2265
barbara.levin@nbc.com
 

Dartmouth College:
Roland Adams
603-646-3017
Roland.H.Adams.Jr@Dartmouth.EDU
 

NHPR
Abby Goldstein
603-223-2490
agoldstein@nhpr.org