Four Democrats seeking the opportunity to challenge Iowa Republican US Senator Joni Ernst in November will appear together tonight in the first televised forum of the 2020 campaign.

Chris Larimer, a political science professor at the University of Northern Iowa, doesn’t expect the candidates to be that critical of one another.

“I think where the criticism will go toward President Trump and potentially Governor Reynolds will be on management style,” Larimer says.

The four candidates running are Mike Franken, Kimberly Graham, Theresa Greenfield and Eddie Mauro. Tonight’s debate begins at 8 p.m. and will be broadcast on Iowa PBS. There will be no studio audience. While the candidates will be on the same stage, they’ll stand than six feet from one another and there will be huge planks of vertical Plexiglas providing additional safety barriers.

(By Iowa Public Radio’s Clay Masters)