Montana Gov. Steve Bullock won't be on stage for the September Democratic presidential primary debate.
Bullock is on track to miss the fundraising and polling thresholds established the Democratic National Committee to be eligible for the Houston debate. The deadline is the end of Wednesday, and Bullock is too far behind to surpass either threshold.
Bullock says he will continue his campaign and forge ahead with a full Labor Day weekend schedule in Iowa. Bullock said on MSNBC today the DNC debate rules “exclude important voices from the stage, including a rural America voice.”
Bullock is among 11 Democrats in the field who will likely be excluded from the debate.
To qualify, candidates must receive contributions from at least 130,000 individuals, coming from at least 400 unique donors in 20 or more states, and reach 2% in at least four DNC-approved polls.
Any donations or polls that come before midnight on Wednesday count toward meeting the thresholds, according to a DNC aide. The campaigns have until 11 a.m. Thursday to submit proof that they have met both thresholds to the DNC.
So far, 10 Democrats -- according to CNN's count -- have met those thresholds, including former Vice President Joe Biden, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
For Tom Steyer, the candidate who came closest with three qualifying polls out of four, missing the debate came at a cost. The billionaire financier has spent $10.3 million on television ads since he announced his campaign, according to data from Advertising Analytics, much of which was aimed at garnering enough recognition of qualify for the September debate.
Bullock failed to qualify for the first pair of debates on June 26 and 27, hosted by MSNBC. He made his first debate appearance, when the criteria were less stingy, at the July 30 and 31 debates on CNN.
