Despite Univision’s massive reach with one of the fastest-growing voting blocs in the U.S., the Spanish-language television network will not be hosting any of the Republican Party’s 2016 primary debates.
But there’s a likely reason why the Republican National Committee decided to take a pass on Univision’s impressive reach: The network, which has the best ratings of any Spanish-language network in the country, is cozy with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, according to BuzzFeed, and it is also unabashedly pro-immigration reform, a topic that has long been a political minefield for Republicans.
The RNC announced Friday that it had sanctioned nine primary debates, which will begin on August 2015 and run though March 1, 2016.
Three additional “pending” debates are in the works.
“The 2016 cycle is underway, and I can tell you it will be a landmark election for Republicans,” RNC Chairman Reince Priebus, who was elected to a third term Friday, said in a statement. “By constructing and instituting a sound debate process, it will allow candidates to bring their ideas and vision to Americans in a timely and efficient way.”
“This schedule ensures we will have a robust discussion among our candidates while also allowing the candidates to focus their time engaging with Republican voters,” he said. “It is exciting that Republicans will have such a large bench of candidates to choose from, and the sanctioned debate process ensures voters will have a chance to gain a chance to hear from them. The American people are tired of President Obama’s policies, and I am confident the debate process will enable candidates to communicate their ideas and ultimately help us elect a Republican president in 2016 to get our country back on track.”
The RNC said Friday that the nine debates are contingent on future negotiations with hosting media outlets. Further, the RNC said it reserves the right to pull out of any debate if the hosting media group violates pre-negotiated guidelines.
As of now, the Republican presidential primary debates will be hosted by the following media groups: Fox News, CNN, CNBC, Fox Business, ABC News, CBS News and NBC/Telemundo.
The decision to partner with Telemundo for a debate represents the GOP’s attempt to reach out to the Hispanic community.
MSNBC, which is owned by NBC News, and Bloomberg Television, which has invested a significant amount of cash into political reporting, have also been excluded from the RNC’s 2016 debate lineup.
Republican officials have in the past suggested that Univision has treated them unfairly.
“It’s highly questionable whether we’re treated fairly on Univision,” Priebus told BuzzFeed earlier this month. “You can fight all day long with people, not to say that that wouldn’t continue, but at the same time you still have to get your message out.”
Democrats, for their part, recognize that the GOP has a Univision problem.
“The GOP needs Univision more than Univision needs the GOP,” Democratic pollster Fernand Amandi told BuzzFeed. “For a party looking to be competitive nationally again, they can’t risk alienating the premier outlet that caters to the fastest-growing part of the electorate.”
