The Democratic primaries are getting closer and closer. The race, which has attracted a sizable number of candidates, has been taking shape over the last few months. Some candidates have also fallen through and as we head into the November debates, the DNC has enacted tougher qualification conditions for candidates who want to participate. First, candidates will need to have at least 165,000 individual donors. They will also need to gain either 3 percent in 4 DNC approved polls or at least 5% in DNC-approved polls in 4 states. The states are Nevada, South Carolina, New Hampshire, and Iowa.
The date for the debate is yet to be confirmed. However, all poll numbers released before September 13rd will be considered in determining which candidates will participate. Based on this new criterion, only eight candidates will be able to make it. This means that some mid-tier candidates who did well to qualify for the September debate will be left out.
As things stand right now, Mayor Pete Buttigieg starts off the list of the major candidates we expect to see in November. Senator Kamala Harris is also expected to be part of the showdown. Harris is one of two women who are still considered front runners for the Democratic ticket. The other one is Elizabeth Warren. The United States Senator from Massachusetts has been doing very well in the polls. She has actually risen over the last few months to become one of the key contenders and analysts think that she is doing really good ahead of the primaries.
Warren poll numbers have also been steadily on the rise, especially among African Americans, a key demographic in the primaries. Bernie Sanders will also be joining Warren on stage for the November debate as expected. Right from the start, Sanders has definitely been one of the favorites and he has done very well in polls so far. The Senator from Vermont is currently recovering from a heart procedure. However, he is expected to be in perfect health by November. Finally, the top five list is concluded by Joe Biden, the longtime front runner for the Democratic ticket.
Biden has been the subject of intense media coverage over the last few weeks after it emerged that the president Trump asked Ukraine to investigate his son’s dealings in the country. The allegations, which were revealed by a whistleblower still unknown to the public, have led to a formal impeachment inquiry by House Democrats.
The president has denied everything even though transcripts released by the White House regarding the call made to the Ukrainian president appear quite damning. Many analysts think that Biden has an edge over the other candidates but that gap has been closing rapidly in recent months. The fact that the Trump campaign is working to get dirt on him also shows he could be a serious challenger for the president.
