Gov. Tim Walz's campaign said Saturday that he has agreed to two additional debates with his challenger, Scott Jensen, following their first head-to-head meeting in August.

Walz, the DFL incumbent, and Jensen, a Republican former state senator, will meet for an Oct. 18 debate sponsored by a group of television stations that includes KEYC in Mankato, KTTC in Rochester, KBJR in Duluth and KXJB in Fargo. They will debate again on Oct. 28, hosted by Minnesota Public Radio.

Walz and Jensen previously faced off in a debate at Farmfest, the yearly agricultural expo near Redwood Falls.

Jensen, who has trailed in recent polls, has criticized Walz for not agreeing to more debates. In its press release Saturday, the Walz campaign noted that three "is the same number of debates that were held in the U.S. Senate elections won by Amy Klobuchar in 2018 and Tina Smith in both 2018 and 2020."

Jensen, in a statement released Saturday, blasted Walz's decision, noting that not one of their debates will air on television in the Twin Cities metro. He also said the late timing of the next two debates is bad for early voters.

"The election begins next week, September 23, when early voting starts," Jensen said. "And, we will have had exactly one debate prior to the election beginning."