Kayla Panagrasso

Sullivan Arena had already been transformed to hold the 2024 Republican debate prior to the event’s cancellation.

ABC News and WMUR-TV have made what President Joeseph Favazza described as “the difficult decision” to cancel the 2024 Republican primary debate, previously slated to be held Thursday, Jan. 18 in Sullivan Arena. 

In a joint statement, the two networks said, “Our intent was to host a debate coming out of the Iowa caucuses, but we always knew that would be contingent on the candidates and the outcome of the race.”  

ABC cited “a lack of candidate participation” for the cancellation. The network reported that while four Republican candidates previously qualified for the race, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie dropped out and neither frontrunner President Trump nor former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley had confirmed their attendance by the Tuesday deadline set by ABC and WMUR. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was the only candidate to qualify and accept the debate invitation.

The College’s preparations to host the debate in partnership with ABC News and WMUR-TV were in full swing prior to the announcement that the event was canceled. The news came on Tuesday, Jan. 16, just two days before the debate was to take place.

President Favazza said that while the cancellation is “understandable,” losing the opportunity to showcase the hard preparation work done by students working for ABC and WMUR is disappointing.

NHIOP Ambassador Sean Kelleher ’24 said that he “had a lot of high expectations for the debate. And so I was upset when it was canceled.”

“Obviously, it’s a big disappointment. We put in a lot of hard work for the last couple of weeks and to not be able to see the final product is pretty disappointing,” said NHIOP Ambassador Kayla Panagrosso ’24. “But the work that we put in has been a really good experience for everybody involved.”

Panagrosso added that she wasn’t entirely surprised by the cancellation, “because we kind of knew that this might happen.”

Fellow NHIOP Ambassador Lauren Blois ’26 also said that she wasn’t surprised. “But I definitely held out hope for a debate because I was really looking forward to it, but I feel like it’s reflective of the current political field right now. And so I honestly feel like history was made,” she said.

Neil Levesque, Executive Director of NHIOP, called the turn of events “disappointing.”

Saint Anselm has a 36-year-long tradition of hosting presidential debates. Politics professor Christopher Galdieri called the breaking of this streak “a blow.”

“The College has made the primary and electoral politics an essential part of its identity over the years, and hosting nationally broadcast debates is a big part of that,” Galdieri said.

Favazza said that while the debate cancellation isn’t a financial hit to the college, “it’s a media and marketing hit.” The College benefits from the media coverage that on-campus political events attract.

We fully support our partners, ABC News and WMUR,” Favazza said, explaining that the College’s partnership with the networks is still strong.

Given that the decision to call off the debate was entirely out of the College’s control, the College does not face financial or admissions-related ramifications.

The unprecedented debate cancellation reflects an unusual Republican primary season overall.

“It’s not unprecedented for candidates to drop out before the primaries begin, or after a poor showing in Iowa.  What’s more unusual is that we’re down to three major candidates already, one of whom has refused to debate at all and another who has decided this week that another debate is a waste of time,” Galdieri said.

With regards to the College’s involvement in the primaries, Galdieri said, “The College’s presidential primary season began in earnest with the debacle that was last May’s CNN town hall with Trump and is ending with this debate cancellation. It’s tough to overstate what a disappointing experience this whole primary has been for the College.”

Both Favazza and Levesque stressed the fact that the College’s involvement in the election process is not limited to its role in one debate.

Favazza said that while disappointed at “the missed opportunity to showcase our beautiful campus… our students have gained invaluable experience and connections working for ABC as runners, stand-ins, and production assistants.”

“Although the presidential debates get a lot of notoriety, our activities on campus for students and the community are ongoing through all four years,” Levesque added.

In an email announcement to the College community, Favazza spoke about the perseverance of Saint Anselm College to remain involved in the 2024 election cycle while navigating the ever-changing nature of the election.

“Candidly, this has been an unusual time in national politics, so perhaps this news fits the narrative. Regardless, we look forward to continuing the important work of civic engagement and supporting the democratic process,” he said.