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Democrats to send 10 to next week's presidential debate stage

Posted at 5:00 PM, Nov 14, 2019
and last updated 2019-11-14 17:00:38-05

Ten Democratic presidential candidates have qualified for the November debate , the Democratic National Committee announced on Thursday.

The most notable candidate to miss this month's debate will be Julián Castro, the former Housing and Urban Development secretary, who did not receive a single poll that moved him closer to reaching the committee's polling threshold.

Former Rep. Beto O'Rourke, who was on the debate stage in October, dropped out earlier this month.

The ten candidates to make the stage are:

  • Former Vice President Joe Biden
  • New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker
  • South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg
  • Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard
  • California Sen. Kamala Harris
  • Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar
  • Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders
  • Businessman Tom Steyer
  • Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren
  • Businessman Andrew Yang

The fifth Democratic debate will be hosted by MSNBC and the Washington Post on November 20 in Atlanta.

The DNC has progressively raised the qualifying thresholds for the primary Democratic debates that began in June.

In order to make the November stage, candidates had to reach 3% in at least four DNC-approved national or early state polls or at least 5% in two polls of the early-voting states: Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina.

Candidates also had to raise money from 165,000 separate donors, including a minimum of 600 donors each in at least 20 states or territories.

Castro reached the donor threshold, his campaign said, but the former San Antonio, Texas, mayor did not come close to reaching the polling threshold.

"Whether it's immigration, police violence, housing, or other issues, Secretary Castro is shaping the debate, regardless of whether he's on stage," said Sawyer Hackett, Castro's spokesman. "While the ground shifts under the frontrunners, and billionaires buy their spot on stage, Secretary Castro is fighting for the most vulnerable communities, and telling truths other candidates are unwilling to speak."

Some candidates dropped out after it became clear they were not going to make the debate stage. Castro's team has said the former secretary has no immediate plans to do that.