Republican presidential candidates brace for second GOP debate: latest

The second Republican debate is set to take place at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, on Wednesday.

Seven candidates have qualified for the debate, which will be broadcast on Fox Business and Univision, and moderated by Dana Perino and Stuart Varney of Fox News Media and Ilia Calderón of Univision.

Those set to appear at the debate include Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, and North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum.

Former president Donald Trump has chosen to skip the debate.

In order to qualify, candidates needed to gain at least 3 per cent support in two national polls or 3 per cent in one national poll as well as two polls from four of the early-voting states of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina.

The White House hopefuls also needed at least 50,000 unique donors, including at least 200 from 20 states or territories. They also had to sign the Republican National Committee (RNC) pledge promising to support the party’s eventual nominee.

Key Points

Highly principled libertarian or ruthlessly ambitious kook: Who is the GOP’s new darling, Vivek Ramaswamy?

Tuesday 26 September 2023 22:00 , Gustaf Kilander

More than a decade and a half after Vivek Ramaswamy was described as an intense “debater-extraordinaire” in The Harvard Crimson in December 2006, he took centre stage at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee as one of the top two candidates.

Depending on who you ask, the biotech entrepreneur came out of the 23 August showdown as either the winner or the candidate who took the most punches from his more senior colleagues.

For part of his undergraduate career, Mr Ramaswamy headed the Harvard Political Union, a role in which he was referred to as simply “The Chairman”. In a moment of foresight, Mr Ramaswamy told The Crimson that “I consider myself a contrarian. I like to argue.”

“Harvard teaches you to be a better questioner… you can be heard even if you aren’t in the mainstream,” he told the school paper.

During the debate on 23 August, former Vice President Mike Pence attacked his age and inexperience, and former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, clearly frustrated at his lack of foreign policy knowledge, ranted at him about his policy of cutting aid to Ukraine and handing over large swathes of land to Russia.

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Who are the moderators for the second GOP debate?

Tuesday 26 September 2023 21:40 , Faiza Saqib

After a fiery debate last month, Republican presidential candidates are preparing for a second presidential primary showdown on 27 September.

The debate is due to take place at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California.

If you want to tune in to the debate, it will be available to watch on Fox Business, Rumble, an online video platform used heavily among conservatives, and Univision also partnering with the network, so the debate can be viewed on those platforms as well.

Who are the moderators?

Fox News Media’s Dana Perino and Stuart Varney and UNIVISION’s Ilia Calderón will co-moderate the second Republican presidential primary debate, the networks revealed 31 August.

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When is the next Republican presidential primary debate?

Tuesday 26 September 2023 21:39 , Faiza Saqib, Ariana Baio

The second Republican presidential primary debate is set to take place in Simi Valley, California, at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library on Wednesday, 27 September.

Once more, the Republican party candidates are set to face off on the debate stage this time under the direction of moderators Stuart Varney and Dana Perino of Fox News, and Univision’s Ilia Calderón.

While there were some clear standouts from the last debate, all the candidates seemed to come in second place compared to frontrunner Donald Trump, who will not be appearing at the second debate.

Fireworks are expected to go off centre stage yet again, this time with just seven candidates exchanging harsh words as they battle it out for the 2024 presidential nomination.

Here’s everything you need to know about the second debate, including where to watch and how qualifications have changed.

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