Several debates and forums have taken place among candidates in the campaign for the Democratic Party's nomination for president in the 2024 United States presidential election. The Democratic National Committee has expressed full support for incumbent president Joe Biden and has no plans to host any official primary debates.[1] As such, the debates held are instead sponsored by private organizations, and are only being held among Biden's primary challengers.

Background

Joe Biden was elected president of the United States after defeating Republican nominee Donald Trump in 2020. While Biden had repeatedly expressed his intent to run for re-election since 2021, there was speculation in the first two years of his presidency that he might not seek re-election due to his age and low approval ratings.[2][3] After Democrats outperformed expectations in the 2022 midterm elections, many believed the chances that Biden would run for and win his party's nomination had increased,[4] and on April 25, 2023, Biden announced via a video that he would be running for re-election.[5] As of January 2024, Biden maintains a significant lead in primary polling,[6] and no incumbent president in modern history has lost renomination.[7][8]

Despite Biden's announcement, several candidates opted to challenge Biden in the primary election. Author Marianne Williamson declared her candidacy in March 2023, which was followed by attorney and conspiracy theorist[9] Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in April[10] and Representative Dean Phillips in October.[11] Kennedy withdrew from the Democratic primaries in October 2023 to run as an independent candidate.[12] Cenk Uygur, a founder of The Young Turks,[13] announced a campaign in October 2023 despite not being eligible for the presidency.[14]

Biden's participation

Despite no primary debates being held for any incumbent president since Gerald Ford in 1976,[15] a June 2023 poll by USA Today and Suffolk University found that 8 in 10 Democratic voters wanted to see Biden debate the other Democratic candidates. Among Biden supporters, 72% said they would like to see him debate in the primaries with other Democratic candidates.[16] The Democratic National Committee has expressed full support for Biden and has no plans to host any official primary debates.[1] Williamson has criticized this decision as "rigging"[15] and "candidate suppression."[17]

Debates/forums

A forum hosted by The Young Turks took place following the fourth GOP debate on December 6, 2023.[18] The first event advertised as a debate was announced in late December 2023, to be hosted by New England College. It took place on January 8, 2024.[19] A third event, hosted by Dan Abrams on NewsNation, took place on January 12, 2024.[20] An additional debate was announced by the Free and Equal Elections Foundation and is scheduled for January 18, 2024.[21]


Schedule

Debates among candidates for the 2024 Democratic Party U.S. presidential nomination
No.DatePlaceHostParticipants
 P  Participant.  I  Invitee.  A  Absent.  N  Not Invited Biden Phillips Williamson Uygur
1 December 6, 2023 Virtual The Young Turks A P P P
2 January 8, 2024 Manchester, New Hampshire New England College N[lower-alpha 1] P P N[lower-alpha 1]
3 January 12, 2024 New York City, New York NewsNation A P P P
4 January 18, 2024 New York City, New York Free and Equal Elections Foundation I I I I

December 6, 2023 - The Young Turks

On December 6, 2023, The Young Turks Network hosted a forum featuring Williamson and Phillips, as well as Uygur. [22] Biden was invited but declined to attend. The candidates responded to the GOP debate being held in Tuscaloosa, which was scheduled to end at the same time. The discussion was moderated by John Iadarola, the main host of The Damage Report on the same network.[23]

January 8, 2024 – Manchester, New Hampshire

On January 8, 2024, Williamson and Phillips participated in a debate hosted by New England College in Manchester, New Hampshire.[19] The debate was broadcast on satellite radio by Sirius XM[24] and was moderated by Josh McElveen, who was the former political director of WMUR.[25]

Criteria

To qualify, candidates needed to be registered on the New Hampshire primary ballot and poll at more than five percent.[26] As Biden did not file for the New Hampshire primary ballot in deference to Democratic National Committee (DNC) rules changing the primary calendar,[lower-alpha 2][28] he was not invited to the debate, and instead gave a campaign speech in South Carolina discussing white supremacy and attacking Republican frontrunner Donald Trump.[29]

Summary

The two candidates spent most of the debate attacking Biden and the DNC, rather than each other.[30] At one point, the moderator had to interject to get the candidates to draw contrasts with each other on stage.[31] Both candidates criticized several state Democratic parties for actions taken to make it more difficult for them to get on the ballot. Both candidates also indicated support for student debt cancellation and opposition to removing Donald Trump from the ballot.[30] Phillips invoked Biden's poll numbers to try to argue that he would be unable to defeat Trump in a general election. Williamson criticized Phillips for not supporting Medicare for All until two months after he had started his campaign and not taking any action on it in Congress, and described focusing on Trump as a distraction.[31]

Reactions to the debate were mixed. Politico described it as a dud,[31] while many attendees surveyed by USA Today said they liked what they heard.[32] Both newspapers agreed that the debate would likely be inconsequential to the primary.

January 12, 2024 - New York City, New York

On January 12, 2024, NewsNation recorded a forum in New York City, New York[33] featuring Williamson, Phillips and Uygur. Biden was invited but did not attend. The discussion was moderated by Dan Abrams and aired on his show that night.[34] The event was described as both a forum, debate, and discussion, but candidates were allowed to respond to one another.[35]

January 18, 2024 – New York City, New York

On January 18, 2024, Free & Equal Elections Foundation is scheduled to host a debate at Chelsea Television Studios in New York City.[21] The debate was originally planned to be held in Los Angeles. Christina Tobin is the scheduled moderator for the debate.[36]

Criteria

All candidates registered for the ballot "in at least four states" were invited: Biden, Phillips, Williamson, Uygur, Gabriel Cornejo, Stephen Lyons, Jason Palmer, and Frank Lozada.[36] As of January 12, only the latter four candidates have confirmed their participation.[37]

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 Did not qualify due to not being on the ballot in New Hampshire.
  2. ↑ Allies of Biden are running a write-in campaign.[27]

References

  1. 1 2 Shepherd, Brittany (March 3, 2023). "Democratic Party remains united behind Biden as long shot 2024 challengers emerge". ABC News.
  2. ↑ Gangitano, Alex (November 18, 2021). "Harris says 2024 is 'absolutely not' being discussed yet with Biden". The Hill. Archived from the original on November 19, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  3. ↑ Gittleson, Ben (December 22, 2021). "Biden tells ABC's David Muir 'yes' he'll run again, Trump rematch would 'increase the prospect'". ABC News. Archived from the original on January 30, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
  4. ↑ Enten, Harry (December 18, 2022). "How the midterms changed the 2024 primaries for Biden and Trump". CNN. Archived from the original on December 30, 2022. Retrieved December 25, 2022.
  5. ↑ Doyle, Katherine; Alba, Monical (April 25, 2023). "Biden announces he is running for re-election, framing 2024 as a choice between 'more rights or fewer'". NBC News. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  6. ↑ "Real Clear Politics". Retrieved May 30, 2023.
  7. ↑ Dorn, Andrew (June 27, 2023). "Has an incumbent president ever lost to a primary challenger?". NewsNation. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  8. ↑ "Could Trump Lose the Republican Nomination? Here's the History of Primary Challenges to Incumbent Presidents". Time. October 10, 2019. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  9. ↑ Multiple sources:
  10. ↑ "Robert F. Kennedy Jr. launches long shot presidential bid as a Democrat". ABC News. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  11. ↑ Otterbein, Holly; Schneider, Elena (October 26, 2023). "Rep. Dean Phillips files paperwork for presidential bid against Biden". Politico. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
  12. ↑ Swenson, Ali (October 9, 2023). "Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will run for president as an independent and drop his Democratic primary bid". Associated Press. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
  13. ↑ Thompson, Alex (April 10, 2020). "Inside the union campaign that roiled left-wing network The Young Turks". Politico. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
  14. ↑ "Cenk Uygur running for president as Democrat". Semafor. October 11, 2023. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
  15. 1 2 Shepherd, Brittany (June 2, 2023). "No incumbent president has participated in a primary debate since Ford. Democrats want to keep it that way". ABC News. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
  16. ↑ Page, Susan (June 11, 2023). "Poll: Eight in 10 Democratic primary voters want Joe Biden to debate". USA Today.
  17. ↑ Marianne Williamson (May 31, 2023). "Debate Us, Mr. President". Newsweek. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
  18. ↑ DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE DEBATE RESPONSE, retrieved January 18, 2024
  19. 1 2 Waddick, Karissa (January 9, 2024). "Democratic debate stage without Biden sparks 'Trump vibes' for some voters". USA Today. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
  20. ↑ Wornell, Tyler (January 12, 2024). "Democratic candidates offer visions for US as Biden alternative". NewsNation. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
  21. 1 2 @FreeandEqual (January 12, 2024). "We are thrilled to announce the #FreeAndEqual national Democratic debate will be held in NYC at Chelsea Television Studios (venue change) on Jan. 18th & starts at 8 pm EST. Livestreamed by @rumblevideo!#Elections2024 #DemocraticDebate #ChelseaTelevisionStudios @AllMobileVideo" (Tweet). Retrieved January 12, 2024 – via Twitter.
  22. ↑ "Marianne Williamson, Cenk Uygur, and Dean Phillips Discuss the Republican Debates", YouTube, December 8, 2023, retrieved January 17, 2024
  23. ↑ Timotija, Filip (December 5, 2023). "Biden primary challengers to appear in televised event after GOP debate". The Hill. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  24. ↑ Koning, Joseph (January 9, 2024). "Biden's longshot Democratic challengers make their case at New Hampshire debate". NY1. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
  25. ↑ Menezes, Damita (January 8, 2024). "Dem candidates Marianne Williamson, Dean Phillips debate". NewsNation. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
  26. ↑ Timotija, Filip (December 29, 2023). "Williamson, Phillips set to debate each other in New Hampshire". The Hill. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  27. ↑ Chambers, Francesca. "Biden backers launch write-in campaign amid 2024 primary fight with New Hampshire". USA TODAY. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
  28. ↑ Chamlee, Virginia. "Why President Biden Won't Appear on the New Hampshire Primary Ballot". People. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
  29. ↑ Mason, Jeff (January 9, 2024). "Biden denounces 'poison' of white supremacy in South Carolina Black church". Reuters. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
  30. 1 2 Lips, Evan (January 9, 2024). "Phillips, Williamson Debate in NH, but Real Targets are Biden, DNC". NH Journal. Retrieved January 11, 2024.
  31. 1 2 3 Kashinsky, Lisa (January 8, 2024). "Dean Phillips and Marianne Williamson rail against Biden to a crowd of seventh graders". Politico. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
  32. ↑ "Democratic debate stage without Biden sparks 'Trump vibes' for some voters". USA TODAY. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
  33. ↑ Phillips, Dean [@deanbphillips] (January 13, 2024). "From a @NewsNation debate with @marwilliamson and @cenkuygur in NYC this morning, to a packed house at Water Street Books in Exeter, NH this evening - the practice of democracy is awesome. 🇺🇸" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  34. ↑ Wornell, Tyler (January 12, 2024). "Democratic candidates offer visions for US as Biden alternative". NewsNation. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
  35. ↑ Democratic presidential candidate forum with Marianne Williamson, Dean Phillips and Cenk Uygur | Dan, retrieved January 13, 2024
  36. 1 2 "Free & Equal Elections to Host National Democratic Debate Jan. 18 in Los Angeles". ABC27. January 5, 2024. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  37. ↑ @freeandequal (January 13, 2024). "Michael - Confirmed candidates: Gabriel Cornejo Frank Lozada Stephen Lyons and Jason Palmer" (Tweet). Retrieved January 13, 2024 – via Twitter.
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