NBC News invited all three Democratic presidential candidates to debate Sunday night in Charleston, S.C., including Martin O’Malley.
There had been some doubt whether O’Malley would be included under polling criteria announced by NBC last week, but the network included the former Maryland governor, along with Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, when it made its formal announcement Thursday.
“The forum will be the presidential hopefuls’ final chance to face each other directly and make their cases to a national audience before the first ballots are cast in Iowa and New Hampshire,” NBC noted.
The debate comes in the wake of polls showing Clinton and Sanders nearly tied ahead of the Iowa caucuses on Feb. 1 and with Sanders in the lead in New Hampshire, which hosts a primary on Feb. 9. O’Malley, who had protested his possible exclusion from the debate in South Carolina, is well back in third place in all three states and nationally.
Sunday’s event starts shortly after 9 p.m. Sunday.
“Governor O’Malley is looking forward to it,” said campaign spokesman Sean Savett.