Safety precautions for debate include on-site rapid COVID-19 testing, two Secret Service checkpoints

To attend the first 2020 presidential debate, audience members must have an invitation, wear a face mask, prove they tested negative for COVID-19, and go through multiple Secret Service security checkpoints.

The debate will be held inside the atrium of the Cleveland Clinic's Samson Pavilion, with chairs blocked off between groups and extra space between rows. Only 80 to 100 people are expected to sit in the audience, NBC News reports, and they all must get tested for COVID-19 at an on-site rapid testing center. Those who test negative are given wristbands, which are necessary for admittance.

Attendees must also go through two Secret Service security checks — one at the perimeter of the Cleveland Clinic campus and another at the entrance to the atrium. While there won't be very many people in the audience, there are already dozens of protesters gathered outside of the debate venue, with many holding up "Black Lives Matter" signs.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up