The fourth Democratic debate on Tuesday, October 15, was the biggest one yet, with 12 candidates on the debate stage at Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio.
CNN and The New York Times co-hosted the 2020 Democratic primary debate, which once again pit front-runners Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren, and Bernie Sanders against each other. Billionaire Tom Steyer was the only fresh face at the debate, after having qualified for the first time. They were joined by several lower-tier candidates, including Pete Buttigieg and Kamala Harris.
Here’s everything you need to know about the October primary debate, including how to watch it for free online if you missed it when it was live
How to watch the Democratic debate online if you missed it live
CNN and the New York Times livestreamed the debate on Facebook, and you can watch the entire thing in the player above.
If you want watch old-school, the presidential debate will also be broadcast on CNN, CNN en Español, and CNN International.
Which candidates qualified for the debate?
While more candidates have qualified in the past — previous debates have taken place over two nights, with 10 candidates each night — the requirements were stricter for the fourth debate. According to the Democratic National Committee (DNC), candidates needed to have 130,000 unique donors and get at least 2% in four polls approved by the organization.
Here’s who made the cut:
- Former Vice President Joe Biden
- Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Masschusetts)
- Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont)
- Sen. Cory Booker (D-New Jersey)
- Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana
- Former Housing Secretary Julián Castro
- Sen. Kamala Harris (D-California)
- Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minnesota)
- Former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas)
- Entrepreneur Andrew Yang
- Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii)
- Businessman Tom Steyer
Gabbard had initially said she might boycott the Democratic debate after accusing party leaders of “rigging” the election, but said Monday that she’ll participate.
According to a RealClearPolitics polling average, Warren and Biden are currently neck-and-neck for first place, followed by Sanders, Buttigieg, Harris, and Yang. O’Rourke, Booker, Klobuchar, Castro, Gabbard, and Steyer are all polling at less than 2% in the average, though that includes more polls than the ones the DNC used to determine who is eligible for debate.
Who is moderating the debate?
CNN’s Anderson Cooper and Erin Burnett will be joined by New York Times national editor Mark Lacey to moderate the debate.
What did the candidates discuss?
The Democrats clashed over their varying approaches to health care and Medicare for All, though they largely agreed with the ongoing impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. The Democratic candidates also had significant differences over their approaches to Facebook’s political advertisements, which allow misinformation, and calls by some candidates to break up Big Tech companies like Amazon, Google, Apple, and Facebook.
Major candidates have taken a stand on key tech issues: Elizabeth Warren has called for improved rural broadband access, Bernie Sanders wants to ban police use of facial recognition, and Andrew Yang has warned of the toll that automation could take on employment in the United States.
When is the next Democratic debate?
The fifth Democratic debate will take place on November 20, and candidates will need to qualify by November 13 at 11:59 p.m. in order to make it to the debate stage.
Expect to see fewer people in the next debate in November: in order to qualify, candidates will need to have 3% in four early state or national polls approved by the DNC, along with 165,000 unique donors.
