Moulton Unfazed By Exclusion From Second Democratic Debate

SALEM, MA — The second round of Democratic Party debates featuring candidates for president will be held over two nights in Detroit next week, and for the second time they won't include U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA). Moulton failed to meet polling and fundraising thresholds to be included in the debates, which will feature 20 of the 23 Democratic hopefuls. But in a television interview earlier this month, Moulton seemed undeterred as he pressed forward with his long-shot bid.

"I don’t think the summer debates are going to decide the election," Moulton told Andrea Mitchell in an interview that aired on MSNBC. "Voters don’t go to the polls until February of next year, and our response on the ground has been fantastic...Those are the voters who are going to ultimately make the decision."

In Detroit next week, a panel of 10 candidates will take the stage on each of the two nights. Of those 20 candidates, only eight regularly garner more than 1 percent in polls. But lesser-known candidates have been critical of the process and have accused the party of trying to narrow the field too early. Sen. Amy Klobuchar likened the debate qualifying process to a "Hunger Games situation" in comments to reporters earlier this month.

To qualify for the July 30 and 31 debates, candidates needed one percent in polls approved by the party or 65,000 unique donors with at least 200 donors in 20 different states. For the third round of debates in September, candidates will need 2 percent in polls and 130,000 unique donors, with at least 400 donors in 20 states.

For Moulton, that means an even harder time making it on stage for the third round of debates. The other candidate from massachusetts, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, has had no trouble meeting the thresholds and has already qualified for the third debate.

With Warren, just five other candidates have qualified for the third debates, meaning next week's debates will likely be the last time most of the candidates get a national stage for their campaign.