In the competition for the candidacy of the US Republicans in the 2024 presidential election, things are starting to get exciting: After a whole series of political heavyweights and lightweights have thrown their hats in the ring in the past few months, on Wednesday at 8 p.m. local time (CEST: Thursday 3 a.m.) the first TV duel. Eight applicants answer questions from the moderators Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum for two hours on the right-wing Fox News channel – the most promising candidate is not included: “The public knows who I am and what a successful presidency I had”, Donald Trump wrote on his online platform Truth Social last Sunday and announced, referring to his huge lead in the polls: “I will therefore not take part in the debates.”
Participants had to qualify for the Republican televised duel
In fact, the former US President has been far ahead of his inner-party competitors in all surveys for months. But a lot can still happen before the start of the Republican primary season in Iowa in January 2024 that will influence voter sentiment – also in view of Trump’s numerous legal problems. The televised debate at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, in the northern state of Wisconsin, now offers his opponents a good opportunity to position themselves in front of an audience of millions and present themselves as the best alternative to the ex-president.
To be eligible to participate in the slugfest, applicants had to show campaign donations from 40,000 individual donors, with at least 200 of those donations coming from individuals in 20 states or territories. They also needed at least 1 percent support each in three national polls — or 1 percent each in two national polls, plus 1 percent each in two polls from early primary states like Iowa and New Hampshire.
Participants were also asked to sign a “pledge of allegiance” stating that they would support the person voters would nominate to run against US President Joe Biden at the end of the primaries. The purpose of these requirements was to filter out the lightweights, i.e. to limit the field to those who are actually serious candidates for the nomination.
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Fox News will air the televised debate on its cable TV channel and stream it live online and on its Fox Nation streaming platform.
In the photo series above you will find the participants in the TV duel sorted according to poll values in a short portrait.