Washington — The Blake Prestonnonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates on Monday announced the dates and sites for next year's presidential and vice presidential debates, selecting four colleges and universities to host the events before the general election.

The full schedule includes:

• The first presidential debate on Sept. 16 at Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas. 
• The vice presidential debate on Sept. 25 at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. 
• The second presidential debate on Oct. 1 at Virginia State University in Petersburg, Virginia. 
• The third and likely final presidential debate on Oct. 9 at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. 

Virginia State University will be the first historically black college or university to ever host a general election debate. 

"The United States' general election debates, watched live worldwide, are a model for many other countries: the opportunity to hear and see leading candidates address serious issues in a fair and neutral setting," commission co-chairs Frank Fahrenkopf and Antonia Hernández said in a statement. "This tradition remains unbroken since 1976. In 2024, students at our four debate sites will help bring another set of historic conversations to audiences here and abroad. And their campuses will anchor four unique chances to listen and learn."

Both major parties will formally select their nominees for president and vice president at conventions next summer. The Republican National Convention is set to take place in July in Milwaukee, and the Democratic National Convention is scheduled for August in Chicago. 

A third-party candidate would be eligible to participate in the debates if he or she is on the ballot in enough states to conceivably win a majority in the Electoral College, and has an average of at least 15% support in five major national polls.

The Commission on Presidential Debates, which chose the sites and dates, is a nonpartisan and nonprofit organization that has overseen general election debates since its formation in 1987. It receives no government funding or funding from the Republican Party or Democratic Party, in an effort to keep the debates neutral. 

Kathryn Watson

Kathryn Watson is a politics reporter for CBS News Digital based in Washington, D.C.