It is unseemly, to put it charitably, for incumbents in any one of Hawaii’s top elective offices to duck crucial debates that help voters make informed decisions.

In the general-election showdown for governor, Republican challenger Andria Tupola has been vocally pressing incumbent David Ige to debate on each of the major islands. No dice, so far; Ige even was a no-show in Thursday’s gubernatorial-candidate roundtable on PBS’ “Insights,” which made for marginal viewing.

Fortunately, the two are now set to square off in a live one-hour debate at 9 p.m. Oct. 29, thanks to KITV4 Island News. Though that’s about a week after early walk-in voting starts on Oct. 23, it’s still a full week before the Nov. 6 general election, and that’s a good thing.

Voters deserve to hear from the two major parties’ candidates, on their ideas and vision for such critical issues such as affordable housing and homelessness, tourism growth and sustainability, education improvement, green energy and transportation problems.

The incumbent surely would be eager to share proposals to build on his administration’s work so far, and though the challenger faces an uphill battle to convince residents, what matters most is that voters have a chance to consider what’s possible for Hawaii over the next four years.

A televised debate makes the politicians more accessible to the masses. Voters should engage by tuning in, of course, but they also need to take the time to vet all candidates on the ballot. As for the state’s top job: Let’s hope more live face-offs are scheduled — and let the debates begin.