Final GOP presidential debate before Iowa caucus in peril with Haley noncommittal

The last Republican presidential debate before the Iowa caucus may not happen, as former U.S. Ambassador the United Nations Nikki Haley has not agreed to participate, while entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie are not on track to qualify. 

The Jan. 10 debate would be the last before the Iowa caucus on Jan. 15, and so far, only Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is the only one who is set to qualify and has committed to the CNN debate, Axios reported Monday.

DeSantis said earlier this month on NBC News' "Meet the Press" that he is confident he will win the Iowa caucus, but a subsequent poll showed that former President Donald Trump has more than 50% support in Iowa. 

While Haley has not committed to the Jan. 10 debate, she called on Trump to join the debate stage, even though he has not joined a single 2024 GOP presidential primary debate.

"When it comes to President Trump as well, I think he's going to have to get on a debate stage here in Iowa because you're fighting for Iowans' votes. I think he's got to sit there and do the groundwork," Haley told Iowa TV station KTIV on Friday. "You can't have an election and not appear on a debate stage in front of the people who are going to be voting for you."

The Jan. 10 debate is scheduled to be the first one not sponsored by the Republican National Committee after it decided last week to pause all debates to let candidates attend non-sanctioned events.

Republican candidates for the CNN debate must achieve at least 10% in three separate national and/or Iowa polls of GOP caucusgoers or primary voters, and one of the three polls must be from Iowa. These requirements likely disqualify both Christie and Ramaswamy, as neither have polled that high in the state.

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