WASHINGTON (TND) — President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are locked in to debate each other before the November election, but what about the independent rival?
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. hasn't been invited to participate in the two campaign debates.
Kennedy is considered a third-party candidate, which the Biden campaign proposed to exclude.
In response, Kennedy accused Biden and Trump of working together to keep him off the stage. "They are trying to exclude me from their debate because they are afraid I would win. Keeping viable candidates off the debate stage undermines democracy," Kennedy's post on X read in part.
Under the debate commission’s rules, third-party candidates could qualify if they secured ballot access sufficient to claim 270 Electoral Votes and polled at 15% or higher in a selection of national surveys.
Both CNN and ABC announced the same qualification threshold, saying candidates will need to reach at least 15% in four separate national polls of registered or likely voters that meet their standards.
Kennedy is not likely to meet the debate qualifications, according to the Associated Press.
"Keeping viable candidates off the debate stage undermines democracy,” added Kennedy.
Biden and Trump accepted invitations from CNN and ABC news to debate.
CNN's debate, without an audience, is scheduled for June 27 followed by ABC News' debate on September 10.
A recent FOX News poll showed Trump leading Biden in a race to the White House by one point.
Trump was also leading when Kennedy, Cornel West and Jill Stein, third-party candidates, were included.
"If Americans are ever going to escape the hammerlock of the two-party system, now is the time to do it,” Kennedy wrote. “These are the two most unpopular candidates in living memory."
The deadline to qualify for presidential debates is seven days before the debate, according to CNN.
Editor's Note: The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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