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) said Thursday she has “ruled out” the possibility of launching an independent 2020 presidential bid if she fails to secure the Democratic nomination.

“I've ruled that out,” Gabbard said on CNN when asked about a possible third-party campaign. “I’m going to continue to focus on moving our campaign forward, continuing this grass-roots campaign, continuing to deliver our message to the American people.”

Tulsi Gabbard says she won't run as an independent if she doesn’t secure the Democratic nomination: “I've ruled that out. I'm going to continue to focus on moving our campaign forward, continuing this grassroots campaign, continuing to deliver our message to the American people” pic.twitter.com/8E0HZ9PKni — CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) August 29, 2019

Neera Tanden, president of the left-leaning Center for American Progress, predicted in a July tweet that Gabbard would run as a Green Party candidate “to help Trump win.”

David Rothkopf, who served in the Commerce Department during the Clinton administration and later became CEO and editor of the FP Group, responded to Tanden's tweet by saying, "She is 100% right on this."

ADVERTISEMENT

Gabbard is one of 10 Democrats seeking the party’s nomination who failed to qualify for the third debate round, slated for Sept. 12 in Houston.

She reached the Democratic National Committee’s (DNC) requirement of garnering 130,000 unique donors, with more than 400 in each of at least 20 states. But she failed to meet the second requirement: having at last 2 percent support in four DNC-approved polls.

Candidates who fell short for the September event are still eligible to qualify for the October debate, which will have the same participation criteria.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand Kirsten GillibrandSunday shows preview: Justice Ginsburg dies, sparking partisan battle over vacancy before election Suburban moms are going to decide the 2020 election Jon Stewart urges Congress to help veterans exposed to burn pits MORE (D-N.Y.) dropped out of the race just hours before Wednesday's qualification deadline after she failed to make much headway in the crowded field of White House hopefuls.

Gabbard’s campaign knocked the DNC's polling criteria last week, noting the Democrat from Hawaii has surpassed 2 percent support in 26 national and early state polls, only two of which were on the DNC-certified list.

“The Gabbard campaign is calling on the DNC to hold true to their promise and make adjustments to the process now to ensure transparency and fairness,” the campaign said Friday. “Crucial decisions on debate qualifications that impact the right of the American people to have the opportunity to participate fully in the Democratic process should not be made in secret by party bosses.”

Gabbard doubled down on her criticism during a Wednesday night interview on Fox News with host Tucker Carlson Tucker CarlsonJudge tosses Karen McDougal's defamation suit against Tucker Carlson OVERNIGHT ENERGY: House passes sweeping clean energy bill | Pebble Mine CEO resigns over secretly recorded comments about government officials | Corporations roll out climate goals amid growing pressure to deliver Former Florida attorney general calls Kyle Rittenhouse 'a little boy out there trying to protect his community' MORE, arguing the DNC’s “whole process really lacks transparency.”

"People deserve having that transparency, because, ultimately, it's the people who will decide who our Democratic nominee will be and ultimately who our next president, commander in chief, will be," Gabbard said. "And when you see that lack of transparency, it creates, you know, a lack of faith and trust in the process."