Hopes for a second presidential debate were dashed on Saturday when former President Donald Trump reiterated his decision not to participate during a rally in North Carolina.

Excitement had initially surged when Harris took to X on Saturday to write, “I have accepted @CNN’s offer to debate on October 23rd. I hope @realDonaldTrump will join me.”

The proposed debate would have followed the same rules as the June CNN debate between Trump and President Joe Biden, including no audience and muted microphones when a candidate isn’t speaking.

Trump quickly extinguished these hopes by stating, “It’s too late to do another. I’d love to, in many ways, but it’s too late. The voting is cast,” referring to early voting that has already begun in several states.

In response, the Harris campaign lamented the loss for the American people

“It would be unprecedented in modern history for there to just be one general election debate. Debates offer a unique chance for voters to see the candidate’s side by side and take stock of their competing visions for America.”

Back in August, Trump agreed to three debates with Harris leading up to Election Day. The first was scheduled for Sept. 4, which never transpired; one took place on Sept. 10; and one on Sept. 25, which is no longer scheduled.

However, Trump changed his mind after the vice president called for another debate not more than an hour after the first one ended.

“THERE WILL BE NO THIRD DEBATE!” Trump wrote on Truth Social at the time.

“When a prizefighter loses a fight, the first words out of his mouth are, ‘I WANT A REMATCH.’ Polls clearly show that I won the Debate against Comrade Kamala Harris, the Democrats’ Radical Left Candidate, on Tuesday night, and she immediately called for a Second Debate.”

Still, all hope may not be lost, as just last week Trump told reporters in California that he might take on Harris again if he was in the “right mood.”