The Democratic National Committee’s outlined debate schedule for the 2020 primary, released to reporters on a call Thursday, appears to be designed to respond to the controversy over primary debates in the 2016 election.
The Democratic National Committee just outlined its primary debate schedule for 2020
The debates will begin in June 2019 — and there are going to be a lot of them.
Li Zhou is a former politics reporter at Vox, where she covers Congress and elections. Previously, she was a tech policy reporter at Politico and an editorial fellow at the Atlantic.
Given the very large field of Democratic candidates who seem poised to throw their hats into the ring, the DNC has announced a series of debates in 2019 and 2020 dedicated to giving each candidate a fair shake at establishing themselves with potential voters.
The DNC will hold six debates in 2019 and another six in 2020, with the earliest set to take place in June and July 2019. The first four of these will be held in the pivotal primary and caucus states of Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Nevada.
“We welcome and encourage a large field,” DNC Chair Tom Perez said in the press call, noting that these debates are designed to ensure that all candidates who meet a certain set of qualifications will have an opportunity to use this platform. Participation won’t be limited solely based on a candidates’ polling numbers, he said, adding that other factors including grassroots funding would be considered as well.
“We don’t want to limit participation based on just polling, so we’re looking at alternative metrics,” said Perez.
Since there could be upward of 20 candidates vying for the Democratic nomination, Perez noted that early 2019 debates could be split into two consecutive nights, with candidates randomly assigned to each evening.
The DNC’s new debates are intended to be “inclusive” and follow a highly polarized 2016 primary, when supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders accused the DNC of playing favorites and giving Hillary Clinton advantageous timing and treatment.
This arrangement is also intended to give the DNC a bit more control in steering what’s expected to be a chaotic, jam-packed 2020 primary, since candidates will only be able to participate in formal debates coordinated by the organization, though they can engage in forums outside of it.
“We want a process that will allow viewers to really understand what the candidates think on the critical issues of the day,” Perez said. Every debate is intended to focus on key policy areas, he added, including health care, immigration, and women’s reproductive health.
A more open debate setup is just one of many changes the DNC is considering in order to tackle a few of the sore spots of 2016 — and ameliorate some of the intraparty conflict that’s ensued since.
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