NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The presidential debate is the hottest and hardest ticket to get in town. But right now, a national polling company is in the process of picking out about 100 people to get up close and personal with the presidential candidates.

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"We've already started," said Frank Newport, Editor-in-Chief of the Gallup Poll. "We usually do it the week before, so during this week we will be doing the debate recruiting."

Eighty to 120 uncommitted voters will share the stage with John McCain and Barack Obama. The Gallup Polling Organization is in charge of finding those people, all of whom Gallup said will come from the 13 counties that make up the Nashville Metro area.

"We actually do a random sample survey, just like we were doing a poll of the greater Nashville area," Newport said, "and we interview the randomly selected respondents and ask them a series of questions about their prospective vote."

If that voter falls into the uncommitted category, they will get an invitation to participate in the debate.

Those people will come to Nashville on the morning of the debate, go through a Secret Service screening and then meet with moderator Tom Brokaw.

"Tom Brokaw will have the chance to meet with them to hear what their questions are and have a chance to see what are the most burning issues," said Pamela Johnson, Director of Marketing and Special Events at Belmont University.

Debate Transformation Costs $3.5 Million

Belmont is doing some heavy lifting in preparation for hosting some heavy hitters next Tuesday. And that transformation comes with a high price tag: around $3.5 million.

"We certainly are ultimately paying the bill," said Belmont Provost Dan McAlexander, "but we've had many people step forward and contribute. Major sponsors and the city and the state have also helped us some on this."

Sponsors include HCA and the Jack C. Massey Foundation, and there’s a mandatory fee every debate host must pay. A flat fee of $1.35 million goes to the commission.

Belmont also spent money to construct a 25,000-square-foot media tent, add flooring, drapery, signage, plasma televisions, a fence and other improvements.

Then there's the bill for the technology – hardwire telephone connection, hardwire Internet connection and broadband Internet support -- required to host an estimated 3,500 journalists.