The Ladies Will Handle the Moderating at Next Dem Debate

It's not yet clear where in Georgia the next Democratic debate will take place, but one major detail has just been hammered out for the MSNBC/Washington Post event on Nov. 20: the moderating panel. It's one made up of all female journalists, with repeat moderator Rachel Maddow from the host network, her MSNBC colleague Andrea Mitchell, NBC News White House correspondent Kristen Welker, and Ashley Parker, a White House reporter for the Post. The two-hour event will air live on MSNBC and be livestreamed on the network's and the Post's websites and apps.

The New York Times notes it's not the first time a primary debate has had an all-female moderating lineup: Trish Regan and Sandra Smith became the first to do so at a January 2016 GOP debate, followed the next month by Gwen Ifill and Judy Woodruff at a Democratic debate. Only four women have served solo in the moderator's chair during a general election debate, including a two-time appearance by Barbara Walters, in 1976 and 1984. How many candidates will appear on the debate stage is still up in the air as the remaining contenders fight to meet polling and fundraising criteria by the Nov. 13 deadline. (More Democratic debate stories.)