Megyn Kelly to moderate Dec. 6 Republican presidential debate at University of Alabama

Megyn Kelly to moderate Dec. 6 Republican presidential debate at University of Alabama

Media personality and journalist Megyn Kelly will be among the three moderators during the fourth Republican presidential primary debate that will take place next month inside the Frank Moody Music Building at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

Kelly, host of the “The Megyn Kelly Show” on SiriusXM, will be one of three moderators during a Dec. 6 debate that will be broadcast from 7-9 p.m. live on NewsNation. The cable TV network made the announcement on Thursday, one day after the third GOP presidential debate occurred Wednesday in Miami.

The debate will also be simulcast in the Eastern and Central time zones on Nexstar’s broadcast television network, The CW, and will be livestreamed on NewsNation’s website.

Joining Kelly will be Elizabeth Vargas, a Peabody award-winning anchor of NewNation’s “Elizabeth Vargas Reports,” and Eliania Johnson, editor-in-chief of The Washington Beacon, a conservative political journalism outlet.

“All of us at NewsNation are incredibly honored to be hosting a presidential primary debate and to be part of what will be another historic election season,” said Sean Compton, Nexstar’s president of networks. NewsNation is owned by the Nexstar Media Group.

NewsNation, former WGN America, was converted into a cable news network and relaunched in 2021. The network reaches nearly 70 million households, and labels itself as a source for “engaging and unbiased news.”

“We are also extremely pleased to have the opportunity to introduce more Americans to NewsNation, a 24-hour national news network committed to delivering outstanding journalism and first-rate political coverage and analysis,” said Compton.

Kelly, a former Fox News and Today Show host, is returning to the presidential debate stage for the sixth time. She was a moderator during the first Republican primary debate in 2015, while she was at Fox, in which she famously clashed with former President Donald Trump, the frontrunner in the 2024 Republican contest.

The encounter, at that time, was over Trump’s past derogatory statements about women. A day after the debate, Trump said he could see “blood coming out (Kelly’s) eyes … blood coming out of her wherever” while he was questioned by Kelly.

Kelly has since said “all of that nonsense” is “under the bridge.”

Trump hasn’t participated in any of the debates as he holds a commanding lead in primary polling.

A senior adviser to Trump said on Wednesday rally that the former president does not intend to participate in the fourth debate, according to a report by The Hill.

The Republican National Committee confirmed, in a memo obtained by The Associated Press last week, that the fourth debate would take place in Alabama. The state’s Republican Party Chairman said that hosting the event was part of a process that was “in the works for months.“

This is the first time Alabama is hosting an official presidential debate.