Graham Campaign Press Release - Statement On Letter From New Hampshire Leaders On Debate Criteria

Alexandria, VA — Christian Ferry, Campaign Manager for Lindsey Graham 2016, today released the following statement on the letter, as reported by The Weekly Standard, regarding the Republican presidential debate criteria. See the full letter here.

"We are thankful to the leaders in New Hampshire who wrote FOX and the RNC today to protect their well established and effective primary process. Our party has a tried and true system of early state caucuses and primaries, which allow voters the opportunity to personally interact with the candidates, see them in small group settings and make informed decisions without the filter of the media. The early states give candidates the opportunity to gain traction through grassroots campaigning and direct interaction with voters. A reliance on national polling to determine who participates in debates steals the traditional role of the early primary states.

"We hope media outlets and the RNC will heed the advice of leaders in New Hampshire and other early primary states and revise their debate criteria so voters, rather than national polls, make determinations about who our nominee for president will be."