For the first round of Democratic debates, broadcaster NBC divvied up candidates via a random draw at its New York headquarters with campaign representatives present. | M. Scott Mahaskey/POLITICO 2020 Elections CNN to hold live drawing to determine Dem debate lineups

CNN will broadcast a live drawing to determine on which of two nights Democratic presidential candidates will debate later this month in Detroit.

The lineups for the highly anticipated forums will be revealed live on CNN on July 18, the network announced Monday morning. CNN, which did not specify how the field of contenders would be divided into two panels, is hosting the second pair of Democratic National Committee-sanctioned primary debates on July 30 and 31.


For the first round of Democratic debates, which took place two weeks ago in Miami, broadcaster NBC divvied up candidates via a random draw at its New York headquarters with campaign representatives present. The drawing was off camera, and candidates polling above 2 percent and below that threshold were evenly spread out across the two stages.

But unlike CNN, NBC itself decided which panel of candidates would debate first, drawing criticism for not making the entire process random. NBC chose to have the panel that featured most of the front-runners, including former Vice President Joe Biden, debate second.

Thus far, 21 candidates have met the requirements to appear in the Detroit debates by achieving 1 percent in three qualifying polls or amassing 65,000 donors. But only 20 Democrats will be allowed to participate, meaning the DNC will winnow that eligible crop by at least one.

California Rep. Eric Swalwell, who participated in the Miami debate, is the candidate most at risk of being booted off stage by the party later this month — likely to be replaced in Detroit by Montana Gov. Steve Bullock, a late entry into the Democratic race who did not qualify for the first debate, according to a POLITICO analysis.

CNN and the DNC will notify the candidates invited to participate on July 17, one day before the live drawing.

Candidates seeking to elevate their standing in the campaign will likely be eager to secure a lectern on the same stage as current front-runner Biden, hoping to generate a viral moment similar to California Sen. Kamala Harris's attack last month on the former vice president's record on race.

During the Miami debates, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren was the only candidate who regularly ranks among Democratic voters' top five choices who did not get to share a stage with other leading contenders, including Biden, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, Harris and Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Ind.

The decision by CNN to carry live the candidate drawing adds yet another layer of showmanship to the much-hyped and heavily choreographed primary debates, which have become must-watch events of political television.

The first night of debates in Miami last month raked in 15.3 million viewers, NBC announced, and the second evening garnered 18.1 million viewers, becoming the highest-rated Democratic debate in Nielsen ratings history.

