It’s time to get to know our candidates.

In addition to the presidential and vice presidential debates that will begin starting next week, local candidates will also be on stage.

On Sept. 28, Democratic candidate for Congress Cindy Banyai will face off against State Rep. Byron Donalds in a debate sponsored by WGCU Public Media and the USA TODAY Network-Florida.

Julie Glenn, WGCU news director, will moderate the televised debate from 8-9 p.m. as it is broadcast live from the WGCU studios on the campus of Florida Gulf Coast University. It will stream simultaneously on naplesnews.com and on the newspaper’s Facebook page. it can also be heard on WGCU’s two radio channels at 90.1 or 91.7 FM.

Cindy Banyai hopes to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Francis Rooney for the District 19 seat. The district includes western Collier and southern Lee counties.

Other appearances she has scheduled include:

Sept. 26, 7 pm – Kappa Alpha Psi Candidate Forum – View on Youtube

Oct. 26, 5 pm – Collier Freedom Debate – Zoom, contact organization for details on joining

Oct.. 3, 6 pm – Dunbar Community Candidate Forum – Join in person at Quality of Life Center, 3210 Dr Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, Fort Myers, FL 33916, view on Fox 4

Oct 7, Noon – Tiger Bay Candidate Forum, $10 to join by Zoom, Register here

Oct. 7, 6 pm – Estero Bay Republicans Debate – Elks’ Club – 3231 Coconut Rd, 3231 Coconut Rd, Bonita Springs, FL 34134

On Oct. 1, Democrat David Turrubiartez Jr. will participate in an Immokalee Virtual Town Hall Meeting from 8-9 p.m. The town hall will be available to participate in on Zoom.

Turrubiartez is running for the District 5 Collier County Commission seat currently held by Bill McDaniel, who is also scheduled to appear at the town hall. District 5 is the geographically largest and most rural of Collier’s five commission districts covering sprawling eastern Collier County.

You can join the town hall by logging on at www.zoom.us and entering the meeting ID: 833 733 3399.

The presidential and vice presidential debates begin starting Sept. 29. The details:

First presidential debate
Date: Tuesday, Sept. 29
Location: Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio
Time: 9-10:30 p.m.
Moderator: Chris Wallace, anchor of Fox News Sunday

Vice presidential debate
Date: Wednesday, Oct. 7
Location: University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah
Time: 9-10:30 p.m.
Moderator: Susan Page, USA Today Washington Bureau chief

Second presidential debate
Date: Thursday, Oct. 15
Location: Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in Miami, Florida
Time: 9-10:30 p.m.
Moderator: Steve Scully, political editor of C-SPAN

Third presidential debate
Date: Thursday, Oct. 22
Location: Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee
Time: 9-10:30 p.m.
Moderator: Kristen Welker, NBC News White House correspondent

All of the presidential and vice presidential debates will be viewable live on multiple broadcast and cable channels and streamed widely.