Republicans Will Hold Their First Presidential Debate in Milwaukee

The Republican National Committee will hold its first presidential primary debate in Milwaukee in August, its debates committee decided in a vote on Thursday.

The committee is seeking to have all candidates sign a loyalty pledge vowing to support the eventual nominee in order to be part of the debates.

Milwaukee will also be the site of the Republican National Convention in 2024. Another location that had been under consideration for the first debate was the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California, according to people briefed on the matter.

“At this time, no other debates have been sanctioned, nor has the final criteria for the first debate been decided,” Ronna McDaniel, the R.N.C. chairwoman, said in an email to members on Thursday. “The committee will continue its work and will release updates as they become available.”

Only two major candidates — former President Donald J. Trump and the former South Carolina governor and United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley — have entered the race for the Republican nomination. (Lesser-known candidates include Vivek Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur and author, and Steve Laffey, a former mayor of Cranston, R.I.)

But several more are expected to announce campaigns in the coming months. The field could eventually include Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, former Vice President Mike Pence, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina.