Voting to determine the participants in the Free and Equal Election Foundation’s upcoming presidential debate officially concluded Thursday night. Five presidential candidates affiliated with at least three parties and one independent candidate are expected to proceed based on the final vote totals.
The Free and Equal Election Foundation, often referred to as simply Free & Equal, is a nonprofit organization focused on election technology reform and facilitating accessible political debates for the public. Originally established in 1982 as the Foundation for Free Campaigns and Elections, it underwent reorganization in 2008 under the leadership of Christina Tobin. Since then, Free & Equal has regularly hosted presidential debates that are frequently inclusive of independent and third party candidates.
Later this month, on February 29, 2024, Free & Equal will host a presidential debate featuring six candidates, regardless of their party affiliations. Voting for participating candidates occurred online throughout January using a blockchain voting app exclusively developed by Free & Equal, with voters allowed to select six out of what ultimately became 69 listed candidates. Free & Equal’s Christina Tobin will serve as the debate moderator.
Voting officially closed late Thursday night, with over 360,000 total votes cast. Based on the results, the candidates expected to advance to the debate stage are:
- Party for Socialism and Liberation nominee Claudia de la Cruz with 108,735 votes
- Independent candidate Dr. Cornel West with 31,446 votes
- Green Party candidate Jill Stein with 22,003 votes
- Libertarian Party candidate Chase Oliver with 20,443 votes
- A second Green Party/Unicorn Party candidate, Jasmine Sherman, with 18,596 votes
- A second Libertarian Party candidate, Lars Mapstead, with 18,047 votes
Affiliations are based on what Independent Political Report has been able to ascertain from FEC filings; however, Free & Equal additionally lists Sherman as a Unicorn Party candidate in an announcement of the results on social media. Readers can view the full rankings here.
The debate will take place in New York City, but readers interested in following it will also be able to stream it on the video platform Rumble. Additionally, Free & Equal states that there will be an interactive chat component for the audience. The public is encouraged to participate by submitting and voting on debate questions in advance through an online questionnaire provided by the organization.
More information on the debate is available on the Free and Equal Election Foundation website.
I voted for Robert Kennedy, Jill Stein, Chase Oliver, Michael ter-Maat, and Cornel west. I wanted to get the front runners from the various candidates and largest alternative parties.
Glad to see that two Libertarian Party candidates will be taking part.