Pence qualifies for first Republican primary debate

Trump has not committed to appearing on the debate stage and has previously suggested he may not do so.

By Ben Whedon

Published: August 7, 2023 10:26pm

Former Vice President Mike Pence announced on Monday that he had cleared the 40,000 donor threshold necessary to appear on the Republican debate stage on Aug. 23.

As he has already met the polling requirements, Pence is now the eighth candidate to qualify for the debate, Fox News reported. Former President Donald Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, tech mogul Vivek Ramaswamy, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum have also qualified.

The former Indiana governor has easily cleared the 1% polling thresholds, but reaching the 40,000 donor threshold took him months.

Trump has not committed to appearing on the debate stage and has previously suggested he may not do so, given his substantial lead in the primary field.

"When you're way up, what's the purpose of doing the debate?" he said in April. Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel has warned him against doing so, contending that it would be a mistake for him not to attend.

Pence has heavily emphasized his refusal to unilaterally disqualify electors to hand the 2020 presidential contest to Trump and contrasted his actions with those of the former president as he sought to contest his electoral defeat.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.