Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has not been invited to the upcoming presidential debate hosted by CNN, the network announced early Thursday.
The network clarified that only President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump met the criteria for participation in the debate. Candidates must be on enough state ballots to reach the 270 electoral vote threshold and have at least 15% support in four separate national polls of registered or likely voters.
CNN had previously stated that Kennedy had reached the polling threshold but fell short of being confirmed on the required number of state ballots.
Kennedy’s campaign argues that Biden and Trump have not been officially nominated by their parties and are not certified on any state ballots yet. They believe CNN is not following its own criteria by inviting Biden and Trump before they are officially nominated.
The last third-party candidate to debate the Republican and Democratic nominees was Ross Perot in 1992.
The debate is set for 9 p.m. on June 27.
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