The Democratic National Committee (DNC) announced Saturday it will hold its fourth presidential primary debate on Oct. 15 in Ohio.

The DNC will hold a second night for the debate on Oct. 16 if more than 10 candidates qualify. The event’s specific location in the Buckeye State has yet to be announced.

Save the date: The fourth #DemDebate will be October 15 (and potentially 16) in Ohio!



See you soon, @OHDems! — The Democrats (@TheDemocrats) August 31, 2019

The DNC's announcement that the fourth debate will be held in Ohio comes as the party works to regain lost ground in the Rust Belt. President Trump Donald John TrumpFederal prosecutor speaks out, says Barr 'has brought shame' on Justice Dept. Former Pence aide: White House staffers discussed Trump refusing to leave office Progressive group buys domain name of Trump's No. 1 Supreme Court pick MORE won Ohio, a traditional swing state, by about 8 points in 2016.

“We're excited to partner with the DNC to bring the next sanctioned presidential debate to Ohio,” said Ohio Democratic Party Chairman David Pepper in a statement. “As is happening across the nation, Democrats are energized, formerly Republican suburbs are trending blue and voters across the state are waking up to Donald Trump’s many broken promises. Those are some of the numerous reasons that the president's approval numbers in Ohio have tumbled 20 points since he took office.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Candidates will have to garner 130,000 unique donors and hit 2 percent in four DNC-approved polls to qualify for the debate. Those are the same thresholds for the debate slated for next month.

The 10 Democrats who have already hit the two thresholds for the September debate stage automatically qualify for the October event.

Candidates who fall short for the September event could still qualify for the October debate, with the deadline to hit the donor and polling marks falling two weeks before Oct. 15.

Of the 10 candidates who have failed to make the stage in September, billionaire philanthropist Tom Steyer Tom SteyerTV ads favored Biden 2-1 in past month Inslee calls Biden climate plan 'perfect for the moment' OVERNIGHT ENERGY: Trump administration finalizes plan to open up Alaska wildlife refuge to drilling | California finalizes fuel efficiency deal with five automakers, undercutting Trump | Democrats use vulnerable GOP senators to get rare win on environment MORE is the closest to qualifying, needing only one more survey that meets the DNC's threshold after meeting the donor criteria. Steyer has yet to make any of the debates after launching his presidential campaign shortly before the July debate.

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard Tulsi GabbardRepublicans call on DOJ to investigate Netflix over 'Cuties' film Hispanic Caucus campaign arm endorses slate of non-Hispanic candidates Gabbard says she 'was not invited to participate in any way' in Democratic convention MORE (D-Hawaii), who also met the donor requirement, needs two more surveys. She made the stage in the previous two debates.

But the pressure is on for candidates to boost their efforts to qualify for the October event, as missing out on back-to-back debates could make it even harder to climb in the polls or attract new donors.