Sep. 12 is shaping up to be a big night for voters and candidates alike. The top 10 candidates remaining in the race will debate on just one night, unlike in the previous two debates, which spanned two nights due to the abundance of candidates running for the seat of President. This Thursday night’s presidential hopefuls are entrepreneur Andrew Yang, Senator Elizabeth Warren, Senator Bernie Sanders, former Vice President Joe Biden, former Representative Beto O’Rourke, Senator Kamala Harris, Mayor of South Bend, Indiana Pete Buttigieg, former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro, Senator Amy Klobuchar and Senator Cory Booker.
The 2020 Presidential Race is host to four times the number of candidates than the race in 2016. At the beginning of the debate season, 20 Democratic party hopefuls were vying for the spot of the party’s top candidate. Now, it has been cut down to the 10 most popular candidates based on polling numbers (DNC qualified polls) and the number of donations the candidates received. However, several candidates did meet the donation requirements but ultimately decided not to move on because of lower polling numbers than hoped for. Hawaii Representative Tulsi Gabbard, who received a lot of media attention for her comments toward Senator Kamala Harris about her record-breaking, high criminal prosecution rates, is one of the three candidates who chose not to appear in this month’s debate. Billionaire Tom Steyer and author Marianne Williamson are the other two former hopefuls that dropped out just recently due to low polling.
Courtesy: Slate
At this month’s debate, moderate democratic candidate Joe Biden is set at center-stage, sandwiched between the two leading progressives, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. This is the first time Warren and Biden will be going head-to-head as they oppose each other on many of the party’s main causes, beliefs and issues. On the other hand, Warren and Sanders have portrayed an alliance in the first two debates, as they share many of the same ideals. While Warren and Sanders are very similar candidates, Warren’s polling numbers put her ahead of Sanders, coming in second place to Joe Biden, which adds fuel to their ongoing “rivalry.” The voters contributing to these polls say they vote based on factors, such as who is “most presidential” and “easiest to relate to.” For example, many pollsters believe Joe Biden is “most presidential” because he held the position of Vice President for eight years, which gives him an edge compared to Warren. However, Warren takes hold of the “most knowledgeable” aspect that voters look for in a candidate. In the end, both candidates are in a tight race at the polls, both pulling massive amounts of voters from different parts of the Democratic party.
At this month’s debates, the same hot-button issues will come up, but since last month’s debates, the political climate has changed drastically, thus the candidates’ responses will change as well. For example, a pressing matter in the country right now is gun control. Ever since the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in 2012, the issue of gun control has been a staple in American politics. However, with a large increase in gun-related deaths (specifically mass shootings), gun control is likely going to be one of the main discussion points at the debate. Ever since the last debate on July 30 and 31, there have been four mass shootings resulting in deaths, two of which occurred within 24 hours of one another. One of the recent shootings will be a pressing topic for former Representative Beto O’Rourke, as he hails from El Paso, the city affected by the mass shooting at a local Walmart. The El Paso massacre is regarded as the deadliest shooting in 2019, claiming 20 lives and injuring dozens of others. After the incident, O’Rourke voiced his concerns and willingness to help the citizens of his town, which he will likely bring up during the debate.
Aside from gun control, the other big issues the Democrats will be discussing include health care, climate change, income inequality and education. Under education, Senator Warren has made it clear that she is all for clearing out student debt, making that one of her main priorities if elected. Climate change and health care rank among the two most “important” matters to the candidates, as they are polarizing subjects compared to the Republicans’ views.
The debate will be moderated by ABC News Chief Anchor George Stephanopoulos, ABC News “World News Tonight” Anchor David Muir, ABC News Correspondent Linsey Davis and Univision Anchor Jorge Ramos. To watch the Democratic Presidential Debate, tune in on Thursday, September 12 to ABC News at 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.