Second 2024 GOP Primary Debate Viewership Drops 27% From First Debate to 9.5 Million
- The second Republican presidential primary debate averaged 9.5 million viewers across Fox News, Fox Business, Univision, and streaming, down 27% from the first debate's 13 million.
- The debate was still the highest-rated program on TV that night but had the lowest viewership for a GOP debate since Trump entered the 2016 race.
- Trump skipped the debate, instead giving a speech viewed by 500,000, while the debate featured combative exchanges between Ron DeSantis, Chris Christie and others.
- In contrast, Trump's first debate in August 2015 drew an outsized 24 million viewers at the start of the 2016 cycle.
- Analysts attribute the lower viewership to less interest without Trump on stage and declining cable news audiences tuning into debates.