Higher requirements to take part in the next debate mean that some former participants have not made the cut.
A total of seven Republican candidates have qualified for the second 2024 GOP presidential debate, the Republican National Committee (RNC) announced on Sept. 25.
Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former Vice President Mike Pence, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum met the criteria needed to qualify for the second primary, which is set to take place on Wednesday, the RNC said.
All seven candidates participated in August’s first Republican debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
However, the criteria to take part in the event was much stricter this time compared to the initial primary and some former participants did not make the cut.
Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson has failed to meet the qualifications for the next debate—which will take place on Sept. 27 at 9 p.m. ET, at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, in Simi Valley, California—and will therefore not appear on stage.
Mr. Hutchinson vowed in a statement Monday to continue campaigning to “bring out the best of America with events scheduled in Iowa, New Hampshire, and across the country in the next several weeks” despite “falling short of the RNC’s polling requirement” for the upcoming debate.
‘Stand Up to Donald Trump’
The former Arkansas governor said he initially entered the Republican 2024 race because “it is critically important for a leader within the Republican Party to stand up to Donald Trump and call him out on misleading his supporters and the American people.”
“I intend to continue doing that and look forward to holding a press conference in Detroit on Wednesday where I will highlight his false promises to blue-collar and union workers in Michigan and across America,” Mr. Hutchinson added.
In order to qualify for the upcoming debate, participants needed to have a minimum of 50,000 unique donors to their principal presidential campaign committee or exploratory committee, including at least 200 unique donors per state or territory in more than 20 states and/or territories, according to the RNC.
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