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Former two-term New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson and ex-Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld were selected as the Libertarian Party’s presidential and vice presidential nominees on Sunday at the party’s national convention in Orlando, Fla. Johnson garnered a record 1.3 million votes in the 2012 general election as the party’s presidential nominee and this is arguably the most politically seasoned Libertarian ticket in the party’s four-decade history.

The Libertarian Party will likely be the only third party this cycle with ballot access in all 50 states and Johnson could emerge as the only viable alternative to presumptive presidential nominees Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.

Johnson has previously railed against the rigged nature of the general election debate process, as inclusion in the high-profile events would no doubt be accompanied by extensive media exposure and coverage.

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Shortly after officially securing the Libertarian Party’s presidential nomination, Johnson said in front of a raucous crowd, “At a minimum, I think we’re in the presidential debates.” While this certainly remains a distinct possibility, Johnson needs to consistently be polling above 15 percent to make it onto the debate stage with Trump and Clinton in the fall.

A tremendous amount of hard work and energy is still needed to reach this critical threshold, but this is the year where the political stars could align to ensure his inclusion in the main event.

The Commission on Presidential Debates has already scheduled three presidential and one vice-presidential debate for the fall at various universities across the country. The commission formed in 1987 and first adopted the 15 percent level of support criterion for inclusion in 2000. In order to participate, a candidate must receive at least 15 percent of the vote in five national polls chosen by the commission.

In 2012, the selected polls were: ABC News/The Washington Post, NBC News/The Wall Street Journal, CBS News/The New York Times, Fox News and Gallup.

While Johnson didn’t participate in any of the 2012 debates, Ross Perot and James Stockdale were included in the 1992 debates and John Anderson had one debate against Ronald Reagan in 1980.

In general, third parties face an uphill battle to achieve notice and tangible political success.

Alabama Gov. George Wallace was the last such candidate to carry a state in 1968 and finished with 45 electoral votes. Ross Perot won 19 percent of the popular vote in 1992 and Teddy Roosevelt on the Bull Moose Party ticket got 27 percent of the popular vote and 88 electoral votes in 1912.

Despite these odds, 2016 could be the year for Gary Johnson to make some serious political headway given the unique set of circumstances that currently exist.

While the 15 percent threshold for inclusion in the debate slate is a high bar for Johnson, several recent polls provided some encouraging numbers.

A Fox News Poll released on May 18 shows Johnson receiving 10 percent support from registered voters, and he’s especially strong among voters under 35 years old.

Johnson also received 10 percent support in a May 24 Morning Consult survey and 11 percent of voters in a Monmouth University poll from March 24.

These figures are near a personal best for Johnson as a presidential candidate, who is currently polling twice as well compared to 2012.

Even though this level of support is slightly below the magic number, Johnson clearly has room for growth during the coming months.

A Washington Post-ABC News Poll conducted on May 16-19 revealed that 44 percent of registered voters want a third party to run against Trump and Clinton.

The Wall Street Journal/NBC Poll from March 19 shows that 47 percent of Americans would consider voting for a third-party nominee, which is significantly greater than data from the 2012 and 2008 cycles.

There is currently no guarantee that Gary Johnson and Bill Weld will participate in the four major fall debates, but it would be a mistake to count them out. If they were permitted to participate, they could possibly determine the fate of an extremely close Trump-Clinton general election contest.