Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) picked up a delegate in American Samoa on Super Tuesday. This technically qualifies her to participate in the next Democratic debate in Phoenix. Arizona on March 15th.
Will the DNC allow her to participate?
Brad Polumbo writes at the Washington Examiner:
Tulsi Gabbard might have just qualified for the next Democratic debateRep. Tulsi Gabbard might not be polling well in the 2020 Democratic primary race, but she does add something valuable to the conversation.Now, after Super Tuesday results show that she placed second and won a delegate in American Samoa, it appears Gabbard may have qualified for the next Democratic debate. If the qualification rules going forward stay the same that they were for the Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina debates, then you would only need to win a single delegate to earn a spot on the debate stage. Under this standard, Gabbard would now qualify.
Here’s more from KTVB News:
Did American Samoa just help Tulsi Gabbard qualify for the next Democratic debate?As Super Tuesday was getting into swing, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard snagged her first delegate in the U.S. territory of American Samoa.Social media had a lot of thoughts at the prospect that her delegate win could help the Hawaii congresswoman be able to participate in the next Democratic debate on March 15 in Phoenix, Arizona.Despite being born in American Samoa, Gabbard was projected to place in second behind former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg. But, projections had Gabbard getting enough of the vote to earn at least one delegate.While the rules of the next debate haven’t been released by the Democratic National Convention, the most recent requirements to participate in a debate included receiving one pledged delegate to the Democratic National Convention from one of the three preceding early states or scoring 10% in four polls approved by the DNC.
Alex Thompson of Politico says no:
Philip Wegmann of Real Clear News says yes:
At this point, the DNC probably doesn’t want to add candidates to the discussion. Naturally, they would want the field to narrow, but if they deny Gabbard a spot, the optics won’t be great.
CLICK HERE FOR FULL VERSION OF THIS STORY