The stage for the Democratic debates is about to get a lot smaller, as both fundraising and polling qualifications are a bit more stringent going into the third debate. According to a report by The New York Times, only seven Democratic candidates have qualified for the debates slated to take place at Texas Southern University on September 12 and 13.
In order to make the cut, candidates will have to have 130,000 unique donors and register at least 2% support in four different qualifying polls.
Unlike the July 30 and 31 debates, which had 20 qualified participants, only former Vice President Joe Biden, Sens. Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris and Cory Booker, South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg and former Rep. Beto O'Rourke have met all the requirements to appear on the stage in September.
Entrepreneur Andrew Yang previously announced that he reached both thresholds, but according to a report by The Hill, one of the polls used by the campaign did not qualify. An email sent to campaigns by the DNC on Tuesday, that was obtained by The Hill, explained that two of the polls used by Yang were from the same sponsor, NBC, and would only count as one poll.
"By the DNC's own rules, the Wall Street Journal, NBC News, Fox News, and Quinnipiac are all approved organizations, and thus Andrew Yang has qualified for the fall debates," Yang's campaign manager Zach Graumann said in a statement to The Hill. "It is frustrating to see the rules be changed mid-game, but our campaign has overcome every obstacle placed in our path, and we will continue to upset the establishment well into 2020."
Former Housing and Urban Development secretary Julian Castro joins Yang as one of the closest candidates to meet the requirements, having already met the donor number and needing just one more qualifying poll.
With the August 28 deadline approaching, a New York Times analysis estimates that only 10 to 12 candidates are likely to beat the clock.
Although the previous debates with larger crowds have been split over two nights, if fewer than 11 candidates qualify for the debates scheduled for September 12 and 13, then the fall contest will be rescheduled for one night only.
