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Six Democratic presidential candidates will be making their case on Tuesday night from Des Moines, where the last debate before the Iowa caucuses — the first nominating contest of 2020 — will kick off at 9 p.m. ET on CNN. The stage is set for a clash between two of the top contenders and progressive allies, Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.
On the eve of the debate, Warren said Sanders, in a private meeting in December 2018, had told her he didn’t believe a woman could win the presidency. After the accusation was reported by CNN, Sanders forcefully denied it. He called the charge “ludicrous” and accused her staff of “lying.” His supporters have noted he’s said publicly since at least the late 1980s that a woman could win the White House.
Warren subsequently released a statement claiming Sanders “disagreed” when she mentioned during their meeting that she thought a woman could win.
Until now, the two have not attacked each other publicly, but that seems likely to change Tuesday night. The most recent polling shows the two, along with Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg locked in a tight race just under three weeks before Caucus Day.
CBS News’ latest Battleground Tracker poll shows Biden, Buttigieg and Sanders tied at 23% each, with Warren at 16%. And the Des Moines Register/CNN poll has Sanders in the lead with 20%, followed by Warren, Buttigieg and Biden close behind. And a Monmouth poll released Monday found Biden leading the field with 24%.
