With the first Republican presidential primary debate mere hours away, the Republican party is facing a growing series of challenges to the debate stage lineup. In addition to Donald Trump’s notable absence, a Tuesday night hospitalization is threatening to keep North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum from taking his spot at the podium. At the same time, political commentator Larry Elder and businessman Perry Johnson—neither of whom qualified for the debate—are threatening the GOP with a lawsuit over their exclusion.
According to reports from campaign representatives, Doug Burgum sustained a leg injury during a pickup basketball game with his staff on Tuesday night. Burgum, 67, was taken to the emergency room and remained in the hospital until being discharged Wednesday morning. It now remains unclear if he will be able to stand onstage for the debate, as reported to Fox News by campaign personnel.
Burgum, a dark horse candidate with little national name recognition, is currently polling in eighth place among the candidates who have qualified for tonight’s debate. However, he successfully managed to meet the minimum polling criteria and donation/supporter threshold required to participate, and he intended to use the debate as a platform to establish himself as a household name. “Governor Burgum is looking forward to sharing his focus on the economy, energy, and national security at the August debate,” Burgum campaign spokesman Lance Trover said last month.
Burgum is slated to appear alongside Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former Vice President Mike Pence, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, and former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson. Former President Donald Trump, the current frontrunner with a 40-point lead, has opted to skip the debate and will instead air a prerecorded interview with commentator Tucker Carlson.
Though it remains to be seen whether this injury will prevent Burgum from taking the stage, he did at least qualify to participate—which cannot be said for several other candidates.
- Among those who did not qualify are conservative commentator Larry Elder and Michigan businessman Perry Johnson, two longshot candidates who have struggled to gain national traction. However, both men maintain that they did meet the debate requirements and are threatening to sue the Republican National Committee for the “rigged” process.
“I intend to sue the RNC to halt Wednesday’s presidential debate,” Elder said in a video posted to X on Tuesday. “I said from the beginning that it appeared the rules of the game were rigged, little did we know just how rigged it is. For some reason, the establishment leaders at the RNC are afraid of having my voice on the debate stage.”
I intend to sue the RNC to halt Wednesday's presidential debate.
I said from the beginning that it appeared the rules of the game were rigged, little did we know just how rigged it is. For some reason, the establishment leaders at the RNC are afraid of having my voice on the… pic.twitter.com/PX5fnD1Rkn
— Larry Elder (@larryelder) August 22, 2023
Elder alleged that the RNC rejected his application to participate because he cited a Rasmussen poll, which is allegedly affiliated with Donald Trump. However, Elder insists that even if this is the case, Rasmussen is not affiliated with his campaign, meaning the results should be accepted.
Hey, @GOP, @GOPChairwoman and @David_Bossie,
Rasmussen said Trump did not pay for its poll and did not even suggest that they conduct one! I’ve met all the requirements, and there’s no reason why I shouldn’t be on that debate stage tomorrow evening. #WeveGotACountryToSave pic.twitter.com/5iapdGtnGh
— Larry Elder (@larryelder) August 22, 2023
In a similar press release, Perry Johnson claimed that the “corrupt and rigged RNC debate process has been a trainwreck from the beginning.”
“It is clear that from the beginning, the RNC knew who they wanted on the stage and who they wanted to ban from the stage,” said Johnson. “Simply put, this is a flawed decision of a poorly run process of a corrupt organization. This morning, I am working with my team to take legal action against the RNC.”
The Republican presidential primary debate airs tonight at 9 p.m. ET exclusively on Fox News.
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