Candidate qualifications
WTNH/Nexstar Broadcasting and The Day are pleased to host a live televised debate on Wednesday
September 12th at 7:00 at the Garde Arts Center in New London.
This memo covers the participation terms, received by ________________________ on
_________________________________.
Nexstar broadcasting Inc. and The Day are committed to hosting fair and open debates among qualified
candidates as part of the organizations mission to inform the public and assist voters in making
important electoral decisions. To determine who is a qualified candidate, the organizations have
adopted the following objective and non-discriminatory criteria to govern which candidates are eligible
to participate in organizations-sponsored debates. To be eligible to participate, a candidate must comply
with all sections of this policy.
1. A candidate must be legally qualified and (x) listed on the ballot for the office the candidate is seeking
or (y) be a write-in candidate who meets all of the legal qualifications required by the federal, state or
municipal government for the office being sought and has filed the appropriate papers for write-in
status.
2. A candidate must have publicly announced his or her candidacy in a public forum. For the purposes of
this section, “public forum” includes an announcement of candidacy on the Internet.
3. A candidate must be actively campaigning for election in the jurisdiction he or she is seeking to
represent for the office he or she is seeking. To meet the definition of an active campaign, a candidate
must have all of the following:
a. A campaign headquarters with a paid and/or volunteer staff that is open to the public during business
hours. For the purposes of this subsection, a campaign headquarters may not be a private residence, but
may be a business address used primarily for non-campaign purposes; and
b. A campaign phone line; and
c. A publicized, dedicated candidate-specific website or web page; and
d. Planned in-state appearances or invitations to appear and/or speak at public gatherings; and
e. Monetary contributions and a campaign treasurer; and
f. Campaign literature; and
g. Press coverage identifying the candidate as a candidate in the current election by at least eight unique
news reports in media (e.g. newspapers, TV, cable news, radio, or online news websites that are
recognized by local and/or national media).

 4. If a candidate meets at least five but not all of the requirements in Section 3 above (and meets the
requirements in Section 5 below) and can show either:
a. He or she has received a minimum of 5 percent for a primary election, or 10 percent for a general
election, support in an established, professionally conducted nonpartisan poll without taking the
survey’s margin of error into account, or
b. The percentage of votes cast for the candidate in a previous election within the four years
immediately preceding the current election exceeds a minimum of 20 percent of votes for the same
office or a comparable office,
The candidate is eligible to participate in the debate.
5. In addition to the requirements of Sections 1-4 inclusive, a candidate for a state or federal office must
have reported, on official forms filed with the appropriate election authority, accepting at least $50,000
in monetary, as opposed to in-kind, campaign contributions, at least 25 percent of which must be raised
from in-state constituents. For local offices, a candidate must have reported, on official forms filed with
the appropriate election authority, having accepted at least $15,000 in campaign contributions.
6. Nexstar Broadcasting Inc., The Day and its affiliates, employees, agents and servants shall not
guarantee to any candidate or candidate’s campaign, verbally or in writing, that the candidate will be
included in a debate until the requirements of this policy, and each of them, have been satisfied to the
satisfaction of Nexstar Broadcasting Inc., The Day and its affiliates.
7. Qualifications of the candidates must be met by Friday September 7th.

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