Just 7 Candidates Qualify for Second Republican Debate
https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/just-7-candidates-qualify-for-second-republican-debate-5498468
A total of seven Republican candidates have qualified for the second 2024 GOP presidential debate, the Republican National Committee (RNC) announced on Sept. 25.
Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former Vice President Mike Pence, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum met the criteria needed to qualify for the second primary, which is set to take place on Wednesday, the RNC said.
All seven candidates participated in August’s first Republican debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
However, the criteria to take part in the event was much stricter this time compared to the initial primary and some former participants did not make the cut.
Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson has failed to meet the qualifications for the next debate—which will take place on Sept. 27 at 9 p.m. ET, at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, in Simi Valley, California—and will therefore not appear on stage.
In order to qualify for the upcoming debate, participants needed to have a minimum of 50,000 unique donors to their principal presidential campaign committee or exploratory committee, including at least 200 unique donors per state or territory in more than 20 states and/or territories, according to the RNC.
Candidates must also poll at 3 percent in two national polls or 3 percent in one national poll and 3 percent in one early state poll from two separate early-voting states—Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, or South Carolina—to be eligible for the upcoming primary and those polls must have been conducted since Aug. 1, as per the RNC guidelines.
Although fulfilling these criteria, President Trump in August said that he would “not be doing the debates,” citing the general public’s approval of him. He also refused to sign a pledge to support another potential Republican nominee.
Trump to Skip Second Republican Debate
https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/trump-to-skip-second-republican-debate-5494113
Former President Donald Trump will not appear on stage alongside his Republican presidential primary challengers in the second GOP debate after opting instead to visit union workers in Detroit amid a major ongoing auto strike, officials have confirmed.
Instead, President Trump will visit Detroit where the United Auto Workers (UAW) union launched an unprecedented labor strike against against the three biggest automakers: General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis.
President Trump “will be in Michigan talking with union workers and ensuring American jobs are protected” when the debate takes place, a Trump campaign spokesperson said in a statement to Axios.
In August, President Trump posted on Truth Social that he would “not be doing the debates,” adding that “the public knows who I am & what a successful Presidency I had.”