CNN will host an election event next week featuring all five of the remaining 2016 presidential candidates from both parties, the network announced Friday evening.
The election forum will take place Monday on the eve of “Western Tuesday,” when voters in Arizona, Utah and Idaho head to the polls to vote for their preferred candidate. Idaho will hold a Democratic caucus, and Utah and Arizona are both hosting Republican primaries.
CNN’s Anderson Cooper and Wolf Blitzer will host the three-hour television special Monday, which will feature in-person interviews with Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, billionaire businessman Donald Trump and Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., will be, “interviewed remotely from the campaign trail,” CNN explained Friday.
CNN’s success in securing an all-candidate election forum next week comes not long after the announced cancellation of a Fox News-hosted debate scheduled for March 21. The cancellation came after Trump announced he wouldn’t participate in the debate, which was to be moderated by Fox’s Megyn Kelly, Chris Wallace and Bret Baier. The real estate mogul explained that he is scheduled to speak that same day before the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, and he said he wasn’t aware of the Fox debate until only recently.
“I’m making a major speech in front of a very important group of people,” Trump said in an interview with Fox, adding that he wouldn’t cancel his address to AIPAC.
“I think we’ve had enough debates,” he added. “How many times can you answer the same question?”
Shortly after Trump pulled out of the Fox debate, Kasich followed suit, leaving Ted Cruz to challenge both to debate him anytime, anywhere.
The right-leaning network was left with no choice but to cancel to its March debate, which was scheduled to take place in Salt Lake City, thus sparing Trump from again having to face Kelly, whom he deeply dislikes.
“Obviously, there needs to be more than one participant,” Fox News executive Michael Clemente said in a statement. “So the Salt Lake City debate is canceled.”
