NEW YORK, NY – The Republican National Committee (RNC) confirmed that seven GOP candidates for the 2024 presidential primary will take part in the second debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California. Former President Donald Trump will again abstain, opting to meet with current and former United Auto Workers (UAW) members in Detroit, Michigan, following their recent strike.
The candidates who met the RNC’s heightened qualifications include Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, conservative businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, former Vice President Mike Pence, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.
RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said, “Wednesday’s debate is another opportunity for the RNC to share our diverse candidate field with the American people.” She emphasized that the Republican Party is united in its primary goal of defeating President Biden in the upcoming election.
Notably missing from the lineup is former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who participated in the first debate but did not qualify for the second. Other hopefuls, such as former Texas Rep. Will Hurd, radio host Larry Elder, and businessman Perry Johnson, were also excluded, a decision they previously criticized when left out of the first debate. Miami Mayor Francis Suarez suspended his campaign after failing to make the cut for the first debate.
Candidates were required to have reached a unique donor threshold of 50,000, up from 40,000 for the first debate, and garnered at least 3% in two national polls or 3% in one national poll plus two key early primary state polls. Surveys counted toward these metrics needed to be conducted after August 1, include at least 800 likely GOP primary voters, and be unaffiliated with any presidential candidate.
According to RealClearPolitics’ average of polls between September 7 and September 21, Trump leads the GOP field by over 40 points. He’s followed by DeSantis with 13.5%, Ramaswamy with 6.8%, Haley with 5.3%, and Pence with 4.2%.
Fox Business’s Dana Perino and Stuart Varney, along with Univision’s Ilia Calderón, will serve as moderators for the debate.
The RNC also disclosed its criteria for the third debate scheduled for November 8 in Miami, raising the unique donor threshold to 70,000 and requiring a minimum of 4% support in qualifying polls.