How Biden and Trump are reshaping the presidential debate process

The WWE-style political countdown is on: President Biden and former President Trump agreed yesterday to hold debates in June and September, marking the first official confirmation that both major presidential candidates will appear together on stage in 2024.

Here’s what happened: Biden’s campaign announced yesterday morning that he wouldn’t participate in fall debates hosted by the nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates, which has organized them for more than three decades. Instead, Biden’s campaign proposed that media outlets directly organize debates with both candidates.

Hours later, after a series of back-and-forth barbs on social media, Biden and Trump had agreed to a pair of debates hosted by CNN (June 27) and ABC (September 10).

• The debates reportedly won’t have a live audience, per Biden’s request. Both parties are still negotiating over Biden’s other debate condition – microphones that can be cut by the moderators.

This new debate schedule has drawn pushback from many third-party supporters. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the leading third-party presidential candidate, accused Biden and Trump of colluding to exclude him from the 2024 debates by moving them up from their traditional fall schedule.

• Both CNN and ABC's rules say a candidate needs to be polling above 15% in at least four reputable national polls, and also must be on the ballot in enough states to secure 270 electoral votes.
• RFK Jr. has already hit the 15% polling threshold in two out of four qualifying polls – but the electoral vote stipulation is still a ways off. He’s currently on the ballot in just four states, with ongoing efforts in 38 more.

👀 Looking ahead… RFK Jr.’s campaign manager said they "anticipate fulfilling all participation criteria" for the CNN debate in late June.