Republican Party withdraws from U.S. commission on presidential debates By Reuters

© Reuters. Republican National Committee Chairman Ronna McDaniel speaks to the largely virtual 2020 Republican National Convention in a live address from the Mellon Auditorium in Washington, U.S., August 24, 2020. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo

(Corrects to chairwoman instead of chairman in paragraph 2)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Republican National Committee voted unanimously on Thursday to withdraw from the Commission on Presidential Debates, saying the group that has run the debates for decades was biased and refused to enact reforms.

“Today, the RNC voted to withdraw from the biased CPD, and we are going to find newer, better debate platforms to ensure that future nominees are not forced to go through the biased CPD in order to make their case to the American people,” the committee’s chairwoman, Ronna McDaniel, said in a statement.

It is unclear what format those debates would take or whether they would take place as often as in recent decades.

The nonprofit commission, which has run the debates since 1987, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The move comes as U.S. political divisions have grown deeper, and the possibility of fewer debates could leave Americans with less access to unfiltered information about their aspiring leaders.

Republicans have long accused the debate commission, which was founded to codify the debates as a permanent part of presidential elections, of being biased in favor of Democratic candidates.

(This story corrects to chairwoman instead of chairman in paragraph 2)