The first in the second round of presidential debates saw a steep decline in ratings from the party’s first set of debates last month.
Tuesday night’s debate, which was hosted by CNN, held an audience of approximately 8.7 million viewers, according to a CNN press release. The release states 2.8 million people streamed the debate on the network’s digital platforms resulting in a total audience of 11.5 million people. The debate prominently featured 2020 big-names Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who defended their progressive policy agendas against more moderate, low-polling candidates.
The debate did face strong competition from other networks. MSNBC and Fox News aired their regularly scheduled programs, while ABC aired the season finale of The Bachelorette. The show had 7.4 million viewers, a two-year high, according to the Wrap.
The first night of last month’s debate, hosted by NBC, MSNBC, and Telemundo, had an audience of slightly over 15 million viewers. The second night was higher, coming in at 18.1 million viewers.
2020 presidential front-runner Joe Biden’s face-off against California Sen. Kamala Harris drew attention during second debate night last month, and the pair will be on the stage together Wednesday night as well.
