The Democratic Presidential Primary Debates

Upwards of 20 Democrats have either entered the race for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination or are expected to. The Democratic National Committee (DNC) has announced how it will run the primary debates in a way that is fair, democratic, and doesn’t result in a ludicrous numbers of aspirants on the stage at once. There will be two heats –– two nights of debates. Lots will be drawn to determine which night and with which other candidates each candidate will debate. No more than 20 candidates will be allowed to debate; no more than 10 will be on stage at either of the two nights of debating. To make the cut a candidate must rank high enough in polling or have secured at least 65,000 “grass-roots” donations. The first debate will be held this June, sooner than I would have thought likely.