Andrew Yang Becomes 9th Democrat to Qualify for the Next Debate

The entrepreneur and former tech executive Andrew Yang became the ninth Democratic presidential candidate to qualify for the next debates on Thursday after a new poll of Iowa voters showed him earning 2 percent support.

Mr. Yang had already met the Democratic National Committee’s other debate-qualification threshold by having drawn donations from more than 130,000 individual donors. The Monmouth University Poll of likely 2020 Iowa Democratic caucusgoers released Thursday was the fourth qualifying poll to show him with 2 percent support.

According to a Times analysis of fund-raising and polling data, he joins former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Ind., Senator Kamala Harris of California, Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, former Representative Beto O’Rourke of Texas, Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who have already qualified to take part in the September debates, scheduled to be held in Houston.

The former housing secretary Julián Castro has also surpassed 130,000 donors and needs to garner 2 percent support in just one more qualifying poll to get in. For a poll to count toward September debate qualification, it must be released by Aug. 28.

The Monmouth Poll released Thursday had Mr. Biden in the lead with 28 percent of likely Iowa caucusgoers selecting him as their first choice for the nomination. Ms. Warren finished next with 19 percent support, followed by Ms. Harris with 11 percent and Mr. Sanders with 9 percent.

Source link