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Utah Governor and Michigan Senate Nominee Scheduled for Face the Nation on Sept. 13

Republican Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed are scheduled to appear on the Sept. 13 broadcast of Face the Nation.

By The Plain RecordUpdated September 13, 2026 at 12:20 PM EDT
Published September 11, 2026 at 6:51 PM EDT

The short answer

Republican Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed are scheduled to appear on the Sept. 13 broadcast of Face the Nation.

Updates (2)

  • Update — September 13, 2026 at 12:20 PM EDT: The following is the transcript of the interview with Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican, that aired on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" on Sept. 13, 2026.
  • Update — September 13, 2026 at 10:20 AM EDT: The following is the transcript of the interview with Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, a Democrat, that aired on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" on Sept. 13, 2026.
Utah Governor and Michigan Senate Nominee Scheduled for Face the Nation on Sept. 13

The Facts

Who
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R), Michigan Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed (D), Amy Walter, and Ed O'Keefe
What
Guest announcement for Face the Nation broadcast
When
Sunday, Sept. 13, 2026
Where
CBS News broadcast and streaming platforms
Why
The program provides a national platform for state leaders and candidates to discuss policy while releasing new polling data regarding battleground elections.

CBS News has announced that Utah Governor Spencer Cox, a Republican, and Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, the Michigan Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate, are scheduled to appear on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" on Sunday, Sept. 13, 2026. The program features question-and-answer sessions with figures currently in the news and has aired since 1954.

The scheduled broadcast follows recent coverage of the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, including ceremonies at Ground Zero and the Pentagon. Previous episodes in August and September 2026 featured guests such as Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Rep. John James (R-MI), and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT).

Joining the guests for the Sept. 13 program is a political analysis panel featuring Amy Walter, publisher and editor-in-chief of the Cook Political Report, and Ed O'Keefe, CBS News senior White House and political correspondent. The broadcast will also include a new CBS News Battleground Tracker poll presented by Anthony Salvanto, the network's executive director of elections and surveys.

The inclusion of a new Battleground Tracker poll provides data on candidate standings and public sentiment. While the specific number of participants in the upcoming poll was not reported, these surveys are used to characterize the political environment ahead of the 2026 contests.

For residents of Utah and Michigan, the appearances of Gov. Cox and Dr. El-Sayed provide a platform for state issues to reach a national audience. The broadcast serves as a source of information for viewers who tune into Sunday morning public affairs programs to track electoral trends.

The program handles political discourse during election cycles by featuring guests from different parties. Following the broadcast, the data from the Battleground Tracker poll is often cited by other news organizations and analysts. The episode is scheduled to air at 10:30 a.m. ET on CBS News and will be available for streaming at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sept. 13, 2026.

Timeline of what happened

Key dates and decisions, in the order they occurred.

  1. 1954

    Face the Nation begins broadcasting

  2. August 30, 2026

    Sen. Richard Blumenthal and Rep. John James appear on broadcast

  3. September 6, 2026

    Face the Nation airs full broadcast featuring political analysis

  4. September 11, 2026

    Major Garrett reports on top political headlines for The Takeout

  5. September 13, 2026

    Gov. Spencer Cox and Dr. Abdul El-Sayed scheduled to appear

Summaries are written by The Plain Record to state the facts of a story plainly and without political slant. Drafted with AI assistance and checked against the source record before publication. See how we report, or report a correction.

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Questions readers ask

What happened: Utah Governor and Michigan Senate Nominee Scheduled for Face the Nation on Sept. 13?

CBS News has announced that Utah Governor Spencer Cox, a Republican, and Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, the Michigan Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate, are scheduled to appear on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" on Sunday, Sept. 13, 2026. The program features question-and-answer sessions with figures currently in the news and has aired since 1954.

Who is involved?

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R), Michigan Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed (D), Amy Walter, and Ed O'Keefe

When did this happen?

Sunday, Sept. 13, 2026

Where did this happen?

CBS News broadcast and streaming platforms

Why does this matter?

The program provides a national platform for state leaders and candidates to discuss policy while releasing new polling data regarding battleground elections.