Three prominent journalists will ask questions of the candidates.

The debate will feature opening remarks from each candidate followed by a question and answer period. The candidates will be allowed to respond to their opponent's statements. The debate will end with closing remarks from each candidate.

CRITERIA FOR INCLUSION IN DEBATE

The League, at both state and national levels, has long used criteria to determine which candidates are eligible to participate in League-sponsored debates. Criteria include:

• being a legally qualified candidate for the office sought;
• having made a public announcement of candidacy;
• having demonstrated that a formal campaign is being waged; and
• having demonstrated significant voter interest and support.

This last may be evidenced in a general election by receipt of at least 15% in one or more statewide nonpartisan polls at least 14 days but not more than 40 days prior to the debate. A 10% threshold is used for primary elections.

The League is not alone in using threshold criteria. Both the federal government and state governments require evidence of a certain level of support before a candidate may receive federal funding or appear on a state's ballot.

In a debate situation, it is the responsibility of the League to provide voters with as much information as possible from candidates likely to be elected. We do not feel that a candidate receiving less support than the criteria specified in an independent poll is likely to be elected or that their inclusion in a debate would add substantially to voter understanding of the issues.

For the August 2004 debate, the League has reduced the threshold from the 15% usually required for a general election to 10%. Only candidates Boxer and Jones met this threshold.

The League offers other cost-free venues for all candidates to present their views to a wide audience. They include our Smart Voter election information web site which received 1.2 million hits for the March primary. Another option is our partnership with the California Channel to provide streaming video interviews with all senatorial candidates. We also partner with Common Knowledge to promote the Easy Voter Guide. This publication contains information on all candidates and is published in 5 languages.

The League of Women Voters is committed to informing voters as fully as possible about candidates. League members take pride in our long and respected history as a nonpartisan voter education organization and do not arbitrarily include or exclude any candidate based on party affiliation or lack thereof. We look forward to another 80 years of our mission to strengthen democracy by acting as an unbiased resource on which both candidates and voters can rely.