Ten presidential hopefuls are set to take the stage for the September Democratic primary debate, but eight other major candidates who did not make the cut remain in the race.
Some of them continue to trudge through regular campaign appearances, a few hold out hope of making the cut for the October debate, and others are striking a new aggressive tone.
Missing a debate is largely seen as detrimental to a campaign, and four presidential candidates in the historically large field ended their bids after it became clear that they would not make the cut for September: former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, Massachusetts Rep. Seth Moulton and, most recently, New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.
A few of the eight remaining candidates not on the stage, however, could appear in the October presidential debate. That round has the same qualification metrics as September: 130,000 donors and 2% or more support in at least four qualifying polls.
Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, spiritual author Marianne Williamson, and billionaire investor Tom Steyer have all crossed the donor threshold and can use their September qualifying polls toward the October round.
Steyer said in an email to supporters Thursday that while he is disappointed that he did not make the September debate, he is ready for the October round. Having pledged to spend at least $100 million of his own money on his presidential bid, Steyer is not at risk of running out of money in his campaign.
Seven of the major September debate outcasts appeared on the debate stage in June or July. Steyer entered the race after the July debate, giving him less time to build a campaign infrastructure.
Gabbard has used her exclusion from the debates into a fundraising call-to-action, criticizing the Democratic National Committee for not revealing how it chose qualifying pollsters. “No transparency = no trust,” one Gabbard tweet with a fundraising link says.
Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet and Montana Gov. Steve Bullock have also condemned the DNC’s “arbitrary” debate qualifying metrics.
“It is the job of voters in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Nevada to narrow the field of presidential candidates. So why does the DNC believe it should have a greater say than early state voters?” a Friday fundraising email from the Bennet campaign said. “I’m not slowing down, but I need your help.”
Bullock remains focused on touting his credentials as the only candidate in the race who holds statewide office in a state that voted for President Trump. Over Labor Day weekend, he is visiting Iowa counties who voted for former President Barack Obama in previous elections but Trump in 2016.
Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan kept a cool demeanor in a Thursday MSNBC interview. “We’re moving forward, this is not going to stop us at all,” Ryan said. “We’re picking up endorsements left and right,” pointing out some former supporters of Joe Biden who defected to Ryan.
Former Maryland Rep. John Delaney, who decries the “half-baked socialist policies” from some of his rivals like free college for all and a single-payer “Medicare for all system,” also plans to highlight “truths” that he feels are missing from major policy debates. For instance, he warns that many families cannot bear rapidly rising energy prices to address climate change through green energy.
“I remain committed to the campaign for one simple reason: someone has to be consistently telling the truth and in doing so, telling a better story about the future we can share together,” Delaney said in a statement Thursday. A multimillionaire who has self-financed much of his campaign, Delaney is not solely dependent on donors to continue financing his campaign.
