A handful of the nearly two dozen candidates will be watching the proceedings on television as they did not meet the qualifications set out by the Democratic National Committee for participation in the first of a series of debates.
The DNC announced earlier this year that the crowded field of Democratic candidates must hit certain requirements to earn a spot on the debate stage. Candidates needed either donations or strong showings in national polls to be able to be a part of the first two scheduled debates – a pair of debates on June 26 and 27 and a second pair of debates on July 30 and 31.
Nineteen of the 24 declared Democratic candidates have made the cut to be part of the first debate under the guidelines set forth by the DNC.
The DNC announced May 30 it will double the qualifying requirements for candidates to meet in order to participate in the third and fourth primary debates.
Here is a look at what the candidates must do to be included in the debates, and who has already made the cut.
What are the requirements for the first and second debates?
To qualify for the first two Democratic debates, candidates must either:
- Get 1% support in three polls from an approved list of pollsters.
- Or get at least 65,000 individual donations from a minimum of 200 different donors in at least 20 states.
Who has qualified for the first debates?
Those who have qualified with both polling numbers and fundraising amounts:
Joe Biden, former vice president
Sen. Cory Booker (New Jersey)
Mayor Pete Buttigieg (South Bend, Indiana)
Julián Castro, former Housing and Urban Development Secretary
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (Hawaii)
Sen. Kamala Harris (California)
Gov. Jay Inslee (Washington)
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (Minnesota)
Robert "Beto" O'Rourke, former representative from Texas
Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vermont)
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Massachusetts)
Marianne Williamson, author
Andrew Yang, entrepreneur
Qualified with polling alone:
Gov. Steve Bullock (Montana)
John Delaney, former representative from Maryland
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (New York)
John Hickenlooper, former governor of Colorado
Rep. Tim Ryan (Ohio)
Rep. Eric Swalwell (California)
Has qualified with fundraising alone:
None
Has not qualified for the debates
Sen. Michael Bennet (Colorado)
Mayor Bill de Blasio (New York City)
Mike Gravel, former senator from Alaska
Rep. Seth Moulton (Massachusetts)
Mayor Wayne Messam (Miramar, Florida)
What are the new requirements for the third and fourth debates?
To participate in the third and fourth debates, candidates must:
- Achieve 2% support in at least four polls (the list of accepted polls will no longer include the Reuters presidential poll or the Las Vegas Review-Journal poll); polls to qualify for the third debate must be released between June 28 and Aug. 28.
- Have 130,000 unique donors. That number would be calculated from the date that the campaign was announced.
- Have 400 unique donors per state in at least 20 states.
When are the debates and who is hosting?
Here’s a list of the debates the DNC has announced
1. June 26 & 27, 2019
Aired On: NBC, MSNBC and Telemundo
Time: 9 p.m. ET (6 p.m. PT)
Live Stream: NBCNews.com
Location: The Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in Miami Beach, Florida
Qualifications: A candidate will need to either have at least 1% support in three qualifying polls or provide evidence of at least 65,000 individual donations from a minimum of 200 different donors in at least 20 states.
2. July 30 & 31, 2019
Aired On: CNN
Time: 9 p.m. ET
Live Stream: CNN.com
Location: Detroit, Michigan
Sponsors: TBD
Moderator: TBD
Qualified Candidates: TBD
Qualifications: A candidate will need to either have at least 1% support in three qualifying polls, or provide evidence of at least 65,000 individual donations from a minimum of 200 different donors in at least 20 states.
3. Sept. 12, 2019
Democratic Primary Debate
Aired On: ABC News and Univision
Livestream: abc.go.com
Location: TBD
Sponsors: TBD
Moderator: TBD
Candidates: TBD
Qualified Candidates: TBD
Qualifications: Candidates must have 2% support in four polls; receive 130,000 unique donors (from the date of their campaign's creation), including 400 unique donors per state in at least 20 US states.
4. October 2019
Democratic Primary Debate
Aired On: TBD
Location: TBD
Sponsors: TBD
Moderator: TBD
Candidates: TBD
Qualified Candidates: TBD
Qualifications: Candidates must have 2% support in four polls; receive 130,000 unique donors (from the date of their campaign's creation), including 400 unique donors per state in at least 20 US states.
The DNC has announced eight additional debates. They are set for November and December of 2019 and January, February (3), March and April of 2020.
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