Libertarian Gary Johnson and the Green Party’ Jill Stein have failed to qualify for the first presidential debate on September 26, the Commission on Presidential Debates announced Friday.
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As the presidential debates are the most important event in our election process, I am writing to advocate that Jill Stein and Gary Johnson be included in the debates.
Only Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will take the stage at the first general election presidential debate this year, the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) announced today.
The commission, the nonprofit panel that sets the guidelines for the fall debates, has said that in order to qualify, a candidate must receive at least 15% support in five national polls after Labor Day.
We have two popular ex-governors running for president and vice-president as Libertarians, Gary Johnson and Bill Weld.
The commission said it will review the criteria for the second and third debates in the future, but didn’t specify in the release when it would make the announcement. He also pointed to polls in 15 states that have the Libertarian ticket clocking in at more than 15 percent.
According to Mark Dankof, a former third-party US Senate candidate, third-party presidential candidates in the US face “insurmountable obstacles” from the two major political parties, as well as from wealthy corporations and the mainstream media.
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The first presidential debate is scheduled for September 26 at Hofstra University. Clinton averaged 43 percent, and Donald Trump 40.4 percent. Let’s hear Jill Stein in the debates. Excluding Johnson smacks of partisanship when the poll selection can be skewed or tilted towards Republicans and Democrats who make up the commission. Johnson released a statement following the news that expressed his disappointment and vowed to be on the stage at the next debate in October. The second debate will be on October 9 and the third on October 19 at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
