Carly Fiorina to be left off of GOP debate stage
Carly Fiorina has missed the cut for Saturday’s GOP debate, making her the only major candidate remaining who won’t be on the stage as ABC will not host an undercard event. Just days before Tuesday’s New Hampshire primaries, it will be Donald Trump, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Ben Carson, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Ohio Gov. John Kasich for the debate.
Cruz and Carson had joined former Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich earlier Thursday to call on ABC News to put Fiorina on the stage.
July 2015 photo by Marc Nozell via Flickr
Romney and Gingrich pointed out that Fiorina outperformed Kasich and Christie in Iowa.
“Hey @ABC: put @CarlyFiorina on the debate stage! She got more Iowa votes than John and Chris. Don’t exclude only woman,” Romney tweeted Thursday. ( Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) February 4, 2016)
“[email protected] should put @CarlyFiorina in the new hampshire debate. she came in ahead of kasich and christie. She has earned a spot,” Gingrich tweeted.
Later Thursday, Cruz also called on ABC and the Republican National Committee to include Fiorina in the event, saying it would be a “mistake” for her to be excluded.
“She has worked hard, won a diligent campaign,” Cruz told reporters in Weare, New Hampshire, adding that her presence on stage would be a “beneficial element.”
Carson joined the chorus Thursday evening, tweeting that candidates should all be included.
“With 9 Republicans left, I call on the RNC to get rid of arbitrary requirements for debates. Americans deserve to hear from every candidate,” Carson tweeted.
The criteria for the debate did not include any candidate who did not finish in the top-three in the Iowa caucuses or poll in the top six positions either nationally or in New Hampshire.
Fiorina wrote a letter to the RNC Wednesday demanding she appear on the main stage.
Fiorina’s request follows a dismal showing in the Iowa caucuses and as multiple other candidates have ended their bids, including Sen. Rand Paul, former Sen. Rick Santorum and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.
Former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore was also excluded, but only earned 12 votes in Iowa.
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