Libertarian Party presidential candidate Gary Johnson and Green Party hopeful Jill Stein have failed to qualify for the first planned presidential debate on September 26, the Commission on Presidential Debates said on Friday.
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In announcing that it invited only Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump to the September 26 event, the non-partisan, non-profit Commission on Presidential Debates said it “applied its Nonpartisan Candidate Selection Criteria” – polling requirements that left out Johnson. Green Party nominee Jill Stein also fell short.
The nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates announced this afternoon that only the Democrat and the Republican had achieved the required polling average of 15 percent in five surveys.
The commission also said that the October 4 vice presidential debate at Longwood University in Farmville will only include Sen. In this critical election, the voters should not be deprived of an opportunity to know that they have a choice other than a Republican or a Democrat, especially when polls indicate that voters are not necessarily satisfied with the Republican and/or Democratic nominees. RealClearPolitics puts Johnson’s poll average at 8.6 percent.
The commission was a private organization created by the Republican and Democratic parties “for the clear objective of taking control of the only nationally televised presidential debates voters will see”, Johnson said.
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The Granite State paper has endorsed Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson and his running mate, former Massachusetts Gov. William Weld.
