Election 2020: Steyer Calls on Perez to Expand Polling Window Ahead of Nevada Debate

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Category: Beltway Insider

Published on Tuesday, 11 February 2020 07:46

Written by Contributing Editor

Democratic presidential candidate Tom Steyer sent a letter to Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Tom Perez, calling on the DNC to expand the polling window for the Nevada debate to make it consistent with the last several polling windows.

This would allow more candidates to qualify for the debate which is scheduled to take place on February 19 in Las Vegas. Below is the text of the full letter.

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Tom,  

When my campaign received the debate criteria for the next DNC debate in Nevada on January 31st, I was extremely disappointed to see that the Committee has narrowed the polling window significantly. The previous two polling windows have been 56-58 days and this recent period window has been cut to 35 days. 

In that time period, there hasn’t been a single qualifying poll conducted in Nevada or South Carolina. Additionally, a week before the DNC started the window, my campaign met the criteria for the Nevada debate in two Fox News polls that showed my campaign at 15% in South Carolina and 12% in Nevada. 

I urge you to expand the window or make sure that there is significant polling in those states prior to the next debate. The voters in Nevada and South Carolina deserve to have their voices heard in this process and to narrow the debate qualifiers without their involvement undercuts the importance of the early states in this election.

Thank you for your attention to this issue. 

-Tom

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Paid for by Tom Steyer 2020.

About Tom:

Tom Steyer left his successful investing business seven years ago to give his own money and all his time and energy to fighting for progressive causes. He soon became one of the country’s leading forces in registering more young voters and voters of color, fighting climate change, working for racial justice, and helping secure better lives for all Americans. Tom has led a number of people-first, grassroots campaigns that have repeatedly defeated powerful special interests, beating big oil to win clean air laws, forcing big tobacco to pay its share of healthcare costs, and closing a billion-dollar corporate tax loophole to fund public schools.

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Tom and his wife Kat Taylor were early signers of the Giving Pledge, a commitment to give the bulk of his fortune to good causes before they die. Tom’s dedication to doing what is right comes from his parents. His father was a lawyer who prosecuted Nazis at the Nuremberg Trials; his mother was a journalist and teacher who volunteered to teach prisoners in New York City jails.

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Tom says his parents showed him the power of having the courage to do the right thing. Their greatest lesson, he says, was that our actions speak louder than our words – what we do is more important than what we say.