--- title: Republican Debate: John Kasich, Chris Christie Edge Out Rick Perry description: Fox News announced the lineup for the 10 candidates at the first Republican presidential candidate. canonical: https://time.com/3984368/fox-sets-gop-debate-roster/ author: Zeke Miller article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-08-04T22:06:35.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-05T08:29:33.363Z article:section: Politics og:title: Fox News Sets Roster for First Republican Debate og:description: Ohio Gov. John Kasich and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie made the cut, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry did not. og:url: https://time.com/3984368/fox-sets-gop-debate-roster/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7011e4299b31707b/69885deb196cf4f22d03767e/republicans2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2560 og:image:height: 1440 og:image:alt: republicans og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Fox News Sets Roster for First Republican Debate twitter:description: Ohio Gov. John Kasich and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie made the cut, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry did not. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7011e4299b31707b/69885deb196cf4f22d03767e/republicans2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Fox News Sets Republican Debate Roster > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=7555420b-ab6f-4651-81f0-4a1411fcc663&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Know Right Now: Ten Candidates Chosen For Republican Presidential Debate [Watch (HLS stream): Know Right Now: Ten Candidates Chosen For Republican Presidential Debate](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/36NSTNo2.m3u8) (1:01)  _Published 2015-08-04. Donald Trump, Jeb Bush, Scott Walker, Ben Carson, and Mike Huckabee, will participate in the first official debate. Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Rand Paul, Chris Christie, and John Kasich will also participate._ by [Zeke Miller](https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/) and [Alex Altman](https://time.com/author/alex-altman/) Aug 4, 2015 10:06 PM UTC Donald Trump, Jeb Bush, Scott Walker, Ben Carson, and Mike Huckabee, will participate in the first official debate. Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Rand Paul, Chris Christie, and John Kasich will also participate. by [Zeke Miller](https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/) and [Alex Altman](https://time.com/author/alex-altman/) Aug 4, 2015 10:06 PM UTC The final roster for the first Republican presidential debate is set. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Ohio Gov. John Kasich squeaked onstage as the final members of the field of 10, Fox News announced Tuesday afternoon, while former Texas Gov. Rick Perry narrowly missed the cut and will be relegated to an undercard forum. Businessman Donald Trump will hold center stage at the inaugural GOP 2016 debate Thursday in Cleveland, Fox said, flanked by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker. The network, which established the criteria for invitation, averaged the five most recent national polls of Republican primary voters to determine which 10 candidates would make the 9 p.m. main debate stage. The second tier will participate in an earlier forum at 5 p.m. Rounding out the top 10 are former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Sen. Marco Rubio, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, Sen. Rand Paul, Sen. Ted Cruz, Chris Christie and Kasich. Missing the cut is a blow for Perry, who has seen his support slip in recent surveys. Candidates on the bubble have spent much of the past two weeks on Fox News and other national outlets in an effort to boost their chances of making the debate. The debate selection criteria has drawn criticism from those left off the stage, like former Sen. Rick Santorum and Sen. Lindsey Graham, as well as [political scientists and pollsters ](http://time.com/3899311/republican-debate-polling/)who argue that averaging national polls without considering their margins of error is flawed. Fox lowered the threshold for entrance to the first forum last week, from candidates polling at 1% in national polls to all those whose names are consistently offered on primary surveys. The change ensured that Graham, former HP CEO Carly Fiorina, and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal would be onstage for the secondary forum. ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] To the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by the states [ INAUDIBLE ] In this election. Not just to [ UNKNOWN ], but to really. 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