GOP announces 12 debates

[136or142]

Have they released the criteria to be included in the debates?  There are going to be a lot of candidates.  In 2012 11 ran and at least Buddy Roemer, Thad McCotter and I believe Gary Johnson were excluded from all of the debates.

This time as many as 25 could run.  They obviously can't all get in as there aren't enough staffers with presidential campaign experience to go around, but I'd bet that at least 15 will get in.

[136or142]

1.Yes, I wasn't 100% sure about Gary Johnson.  It must have been tough for Buddy Roemer, the top dog of a state for 8 years, to go from that to being considered so fringe that he wasn't even invited to the debates.

2.McCotter may have dropped out before the first debate. I forget.

3.I believe around 14 candidates ran in 2008 though some of them may have just formed exploratory committees and not actually entered.

4.There actually doesn't really need to be a winnowing. 

The reason it occurs is because if the convention isn't decided on the first ballot, it becomes a 'brokered convention.'  If the Democrats and Republicans were to adopt the Canadian system whereby the candidate with the lowest support at the convention is dropped from the next ballot, they would create a process wherein candidates would have an incentive to remain in the race until the convention because after dropping off the ballot they could call for their supporters to shift to a preferred candidate.  In this way, they would influence who wins the nomination.  It would also make for exciting television.


Candidates who still are unable to raise money would likely still drop out but many would stay in.  Here in Canada, most parties have moved to a 'one member, one vote' leadership process, but the Federal Liberal Party in 2006 had a delegated leadership convention.  Of the 11 candidates who entered 3 dropped out before the convention (and before the delegate selection meetings) but 8 candidates stayed in, even though only 4 had a realistic shot at winning.