Trump Rejects Calls for Another Debate as 880,000 Early Votes Already Cast

(Left) Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, answers questions during a moderated conversation with members of the National Association of Black Journalists in Philadelphia, Pa., on Sept. 17, 2024. (Right) Former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, holds a campaign event in Flint, Mich., on Sept. 17, 2024. Win McNamee, Scott Olson/Getty Images

Former President Donald Trump reaffirmed on social media that he will not partake in any more debates ahead of the November election because votes are already being cast.

Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign “put out a request for another Debate,” he wrote on Truth Social late on Oct. 1, adding that he believes he won their first and only debate last month.

“I’m not looking to do it again, too far down the line. Votes are already cast,” Trump wrote.

The former president’s remarks came after his running mate, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), and Harris’s, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, held their first and only vice presidential debate on the evening of Oct. 1.

It’s just five weeks before Election Day, and millions of voters can now cast early ballots.

This week, Harris campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon said in a statement that “Vice President Harris believes that the American people deserve to see her and Trump on the debate stage one more time.”

“She will be in Atlanta on October 23—Donald Trump should step up and face the voters,” she said.

After their first debate last month, the Harris campaign made a similar request. At the time, Trump indicated that he would not partake and said that he believes he won the debate.

Trump also debated President Joe Biden in late June, which later sparked widespread calls among Democrats for Biden to suspend his reelection campaign. The president announced in July that he would end his campaign and threw his support behind Harris, who later was nominated as the Democratic Party’s candidate to face Trump.

As of Oct. 2, more than 880,000 people have voted early in-person or returned mail-in ballots, according to a tracking website provided by the University of Florida’s Election Lab. About 588,000 have voted by mail, and 299,000 have voted in person so far, it shows.

Of the states that report party affiliation, nearly 60 percent of those who have voted early or by mail are Democrats, 24 percent are Republicans, and 15 percent are unaffiliated or belong to a third party, according to the tracker. A majority of early voters, 57 percent, are 65 or older, and another 29 percent are aged 41 to 65, it shows.

The vice presidential debate played out as the stakes of the contest rose again after Iran fired missiles into Israel, while a devastating hurricane and potentially debilitating port strike roiled the country at home. Walz and Vance outlined the policy and character differences between their running mates while trying to introduce themselves to the country.

Earlier this week, the Trump campaign said the former president would not take part in the “60 Minutes” primetime interview following a statement from CBS News.

“For over half a century, 60 Minutes has invited the Democratic and Republican tickets to appear on our broadcast as Americans head to the polls,” the channel said in a statement. “This year, both the Harris and Trump campaigns agreed to sit down with 60 Minutes.”

CBS then said that “after initially accepting 60 Minutes’ request for an interview with Scott Pelley, former President Trump’s campaign has decided not to participate.”

On social media, Trump spokesman Steven Cheung wrote that CBS News’s statement is “fake news” because “60 Minutes” had “begged for an interview.”

“There were initial discussions, but nothing was ever scheduled or locked in,” he said, adding that the network had also “insisted on doing live fact checking.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.