Just days after announcing he'd qualified for the first Republican presidential debate, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez will not be participating with the other 2024 GOP contenders.
Suarez said Friday that he had qualified for Wednesday's debate in Milwaukee, but party officials disagreed. Senior RNC advisers who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share internal discussions said later that Suarez had not yet officially met the criteria, and Suarez was not among the candidates listed in the official on-stage lineup released Monday night.
To qualify for the debate, candidates needed to satisfy polling and donor requirements set by the Republican National Committee: at least 1% in three high-quality national polls or a mix of national and early-state polls, between July 1 and Aug. 21, and a minimum of 40,000 donors, with 200 in 20 or more states.
On Friday, Suarez reported a 2% national support in a poll, but the figure was not certified by the Republican National Committee.
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In a statement Tuesday, Suarez said his team had been in touch with the RNC and had believed the polling requirement would be met by two polls that were yet to be reported.
But on Monday night, Suarez said his team learned that a poll that had an affiliation with fellow Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign would not be counted, despite multiple published reports confirming the poll was not paid for by any campaign.
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"I am sorry that this debate will not include my perspectives from the largest growing voting block in our country - young, conservative Hispanics. Additionally, Republicans will not be able to hear my story of how conservative principles of keeping taxes low, keeping people safe and focusing on creating prosperity for all created the most successful big city in America," Suarez's statement said. "I respect the rules and process set forth by the RNC, and I look forward to working with my party to ensure we win back the White House and restore the path to a brighter future for our country.”
So far, nine candidates say they have met the debate qualifications, although former President Donald Trump has said he won't attend. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, and former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley are among those set to participate.
The Miami mayor, 45, has been one of the more creative candidates in his efforts to boost his donor numbers.
He offered up a chance to see Argentine soccer legend Lionel Messi’s debut as a player for Inter Miami, saying donors who gave $1 would be entered in a chance to get front-row tickets.
Still shy of the donor threshold, he took a page from Burgum’s playbook by offering a $20 “Bidenomics Relief Card” in return for $1 donations.
A super political action committee supporting Suarez launched a sweepstakes for a chance at up to $15,000 in tuition, in exchange for a $1 donation to Suarez’s campaign. Suarez's campaign did not return a message seeking details on his number of donors or qualifying polls.
