Tuesday’s gubernatorial debate at USC called off

LOS ANGELES (KABC) — A gubernatorial debate set for Tuesday has been called off.

The debate was scheduled to air on ABC7 Los Angeles, in addition to the ABC stations in San Francisco and Fresno, with six of the candidates in the race. Those candidates were selected according to objective criteria widely used to set debate participation nationwide based on polling and fundraising.

Many scholars have come forward to defend the methodology, saying its criteria are “among the most widely accepted indicators of candidate viability in both academic research and applied practice.”

While some have questioned it to expand the field of candidates, USC issued a statement Monday night, saying in part, “We recognize that concerns about the selection criteria for the debate have created a significant distraction from the issues that matter to voters. Unfortunately, USC and KABC have not been able to reach an agreement on expanding the number of candidates at the debate. As a result, USC has made the difficult decision to cancel the debate and will look for other opportunities to educate voters on the candidates and issues.”