Miami Mayor Francis Suarez has qualified to participate in the first Republican National Committee primary debate next week for the GOP presidential nomination.
SOS America PAC, the super PAC backing Suarez, announced on Monday that the mayor had met polling requirements to appear at the Aug. 23 debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Suarez reached 1% in three national polls and 1% in several early nominating states in addition to meeting the 40,000 unique donor requirement threshold. The RNC required candidates to have at least 1% in three national polls or 1% in two national polls and 1% in one early state poll from two separate early nominating states such as Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina in order to make the debate stage.
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"Another day, another poll confirms that conservative Miami Mayor Francis Suarez will be on the RNC debate stage," said SOS America PAC spokesman Chapin Fay. "Having a successful Republican with a strong record of accomplishment, who is also a prominent Hispanic voice in a campaign with no other Hispanic candidates is a critical step in winning over one of the fastest growing demographics in America."
"When Mayor Suarez is included in polls, his message of bringing the Miami Model to America clearly strikes a chord with Republican primary voters," Fay continued. "And when you compare Joe Biden's America to Francis Suarez's Miami, it's no surprise. Under Mayor Suarez, Miami has become one of the safest, most prosperous large cities in the nation. America needs conservative Miami Mayor Francis Suarez."
Last week Suarez suggested that any candidate who didn't meet the requirements for the first debate should consider dropping out of the race. “I agree that if you can’t meet the minimum thresholds, you shouldn’t be trying to take the time involved away from being productive,” Suarez said at the Iowa State Fair.
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The mayor is a long-shot candidate who launched his campaign for the presidential nomination in mid-June. Since then, he has polled in the low single digits, far behind former President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), the two other Floridians running for president. A RealClearPolitics poll average has Suarez at 0.1% support among GOP primary voters compared to Trump at 54.2% and DeSantis at 15.1%.
Trump has indicated that he may not attend the first primary debate next week due to his opposition to the loyalty pledge the RNC is also requiring of all participating candidates. The former president said he would make a decision by this week on whether he would attend. Meanwhile, DeSantis has already signed his loyalty pledge.