NY Governor Debate: How To Watch And What's At Stake

NEW YORK — Andrew Cuomo and Cynthia Nixon will finally be scene partners. The Democratic candidates for New York governor will face off Wednesday in the only scheduled televised debate ahead of the Sept. 13 primary election.

CBS2 and Hofstra University on Long Island will host the one-hour showdown between the two-term incumbent governor and the longtime activist and actress best known for her role in "Sex and the City." The pair will debate seated in front of an invited audience, with CBS2 News co-anchor Maurice DuBois and WCBS senior political correspondent Marcia Kramer moderating.

The showdown will give Nixon a chance to continue her sharp attacks against Cuomo as too friendly to Republicans and beholden to corporate interests. The governor has defended his record of liberal achievements, such as the state's legalization of same-sex marriage, its tough gun-control laws and securing a $15-an-hour minimum wage.

Cuomo agreed to his first one-on-one debate since after months of pressure from his upstart left-wing challenger. The 2010 and 2014 gubernatorial elections each featured a single debate with candidates from various parties.

Nixon's campaign has complained that the debate was set up according to Cuomo's preferences. Her senior adviser, Rebecca Katz, even asked that the debate hall temperature be set at 76 degrees, as Cuomo is known to appear in ice-cold rooms, The New York Times reported Tuesday.

A Cuomo spokeswoman reportedly told the Times that Nixon's camp "thrives on paranoia and melodrama."

Whatever the thermostat setting, Nixon has a long way to go to close the gap between her and the well known governor. Cuomo led Nixon 60 percent to 29 percent in a Siena College poll published July 31.

Who, where and when

The debate between Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Cynthia Nixon will be taped at 5 p.m. Aug. 29 at Hofstra University to air at 7 p.m. No public tickets are available to join the invited audience of about 150.

Hofstra also hosted the first 2016 presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.

How to watch

The debate is scheduled to air at 7 p.m. It will be offered to CBS affiliates across the state, such as CBS2 in New York City. It will also be simulcast on the 1010WINS radio station and in Spanish on WLNY TV-10/55.

You can also stream the debate on the WCBS website and on Facebook.

Several Brooklyn bars are hosting watch parties where you can watch the showdown with a drink. Learn more here.

(Lead image: Gov. Andrew Cuomo, left, and Cynthia Nixon, right. Photos by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP/Shutterstock)