Eight Republican Candidates Take the Stage in Milwaukee for First GOP Primary Debate of 2024 Election Cycle

Eight Republican presidential candidates took the stage in Milwaukee on Wednesday night for the first GOP primary debate of the 2024 election cycle. The debate marked the first opportunity for many of the candidates to speak directly to the American people after months of campaigning in early-voting primary states.

A CBS News poll released Sunday showed former President Donald Trump with a wide lead over the rest of the field, earning the support of 62% of likely Republican primary voters. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was a distant second, earning 16% support.

The candidates debating Thursday night included former Vice President Mike Pence, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, former South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, and former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan.

Trump chose to skip the showdown and instead taped an interview with Tucker Carlson, which is being released in tandem with the debate.

The debate kicked off with the candidates training their fire at President Biden. It remains to be seen whether they will try to cut down other candidates’ momentum, the way a pro-Ron DeSantis candidate did during the 2020 Democratic primaries.

The first Republican debate of the 2024 presidential primary cycle is an important milestone in the race for the White House. It will be interesting to see how the candidates fare in the coming months as they continue to campaign for the Republican nomination.