When Curtis Bashaw spoke to supporters at a Boonton Township event two weeks ago, he said two U.S. Senate debates were on tap assuming the details could be worked out.

Apparently they were – and then some.

The Senate campaign of Democrat Andy Kim on Tuesday said he will participate in three debates with Bashaw.

The men are vying to replace the convicted Bob Menendez in the Senate. Menendez filed to run as an independent, but that was before his conviction on various corruption charges. Menendez has said he will resign his seat later this month. Gov. Phil Murphy will then name a “caretaker” to serve the remainder of Menendez’ term.

The debates, according to the Kim campaign will be as follows:

Oct. 6 at 8 p.m. Sponsors are the New Jersey Globe, The Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics at Rider University, and On New Jersey

Oct. 15 at 8 p.m. The sponsor is NJ Spotlight News at NJ PBS.

Oct. 22 at 8 p.m. The sponsor is News 12 New Jersey.

Democrats have won every U.S. Senate election in the state since 1972, so Kim has to be considered the favorite.

Still, Bashaw poses an interesting challenge. To get the party’s nomination, he had to beat a Donald Trump-endorsed candidate in the primary – Christine Serrano Glassner.

Bashaw says he’s the “centrist” in the race and his talk in Boonton Township certainly put that on display. He talked about America being a place for all regardless of race, gender or sexual orientation. He quoted Muhammad Ali and referenced Harvey Milk, figures not usually brought up at GOP gatherings.

He said Kim is the liberal extremist in the race.

Kim is not impressed by any of this.

In a statement accompanying the debate announcement, Kim said:

“Does New Jersey want to move forward and make the American Dream more accessible and affordable for everyone, or does New Jersey want to go backwards with a MAGA agenda that only helps the well-off and well-connected? Curtis Bashaw will also have to answer for why he strongly supports the Supreme Court’s dangerous decision to end reproductive rights for women across our country. I’m ready to show why our country needs public servants instead of out-of-touch multi-millionaires.”

Let the debating begin.