Republican brass set to tighten criteria for second 2024 GOP debate, increase donation threshold
Admission to the stage at next month’s second 2024 GOP presidential debate is about to get a bit harder.
The Republican National Committee is tightening its standards for the September showdown, demanding candidates hit a 50,000 unique donor threshold — up from 40,000 — and garner at least 3% support in select polling, up from 1%, according to a source familiar with the plans.
Under the new guidelines, candidates must hit 3% in at least two national polls or 3% in one national poll and 3% in two early states, per the source.
Early states as defined by the RNC include Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada.
As in the first debate, polls must be approved by the RNC and survey at least 800 registered likely Republican voters while also being independent of the 2024 campaigns, the source said. Eligible polls must also be conducted on or after Aug. 1.
The second GOP debate is scheduled to take place Sept. 27 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif.
Another recurring perquisite is for candidates to sign the RNC’s pledges not to take part in unsanctioned debates — and commit to backing the eventual nominee.
That was a sticking point for some aspirants hoping to get to the Aug. 23 Fox News debate in Milwaukee.
Former Texas Rep. Will Hurd, for instance, indicated the pledge was a no-go for him given his aversion to the party’s front-runner, former President Donald Trump.
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, meanwhile, has said he will “take the pledge in 2024 just as seriously as Donald Trump” did in 2016.
“We had these debate pledges eight years ago. And all of us signed them,” he told CNN last month. “Then we got on the debate stage and we were asked to reaffirm them. Donald Trump refused to raise his hand.”
With three weeks to go until the first debate, seven candidates are believed to have met the RNC’s polling and donor requirements to participate: Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, Christie, and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.
Notably, former Vice President Mike Pence and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson have not yet confirmed they cleared the donor hurdle, though they have met the polling requirements.
Looming over the first debate is hubbub about whether Trump will participate.
The former president’s longtime adviser Jason Miller hinted that the 77-year-old is unlikely to join either of the first two debates.
“Should I debate,” Trump pondered on Truth Social on Tuesday with a graphic showing his enormous polling lead over his peers.
The post came ahead of his third indictment in the last four months, on four counts for his alleged scheming to overturn the 2020 election.
Trump is due for arraignment in federal court Thursday.
Rivals such as Christie and DeSantis, as well as RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, have urged Trump to jump into the lions’ den, but he has remained noncommittal.
Trump has a 35.8 percentage-point lead over his nearest primary competitor, DeSantis, in the most recent RealClearPolitics average.
