2020 primary debate guide: Everything you need to know ahead of the December showdown

The final Democratic primary debate of the year is set to take place at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles on Thursday, with less than two months to go before the Iowa caucus.

PBS NewsHour and Politico will host the forum, which will air from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET.

The debate was threatened by a labor dispute between Unite Here Local 11, which represents 150 cooks, dishwashers, cashiers and servers associated with the university, and food service provider Sodexo.

All seven Democratic presidential candidates who had qualified for the event vowed to not cross the union’s picket line, but an agreement between the two sides was reached on Tuesday.

Who will be there? Who won’t? What questions will the candidates be asked? Who will jab at whom? What will we learn?

Keep reading for everything you need to know for the latest Democratic primary debate.

Who will be there, and in what order?

In order of stage placement:

– Former tech entrepreneur Andrew Yang

– South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg

– Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.)

– Former Vice President Joe Biden

– Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)

– Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.)

– Hedge fund billionaire Tom Steyer

What will be the stage placement?

Biden will notably be the only candidate who is center stage during the forum. The stage placement was chosen based on the candidates’ averages in Democratic National Committee-approved polls conducted since the last debate on Nov. 20. In this case, Biden was the highest-polling candidate.

His stage placement is another sign of how consistent Biden’s lead has been in the polls throughout the 2020 contest, while other candidates have frequently swapped places.

What topics could come up?

Impeachment

The debate comes exactly one day after the House voted to impeach President Trump. The issue will now go to the Senate where a trial will be held. Three of the candidates on stage, Warren, Sanders, and Klobuchar, will be called back to Washington for the trial. Expect them to field questions about the topic. Biden could also face questions given Trump’s call for Ukraine to investigate him and his son, which kicked off the impeachment inquiry.

Diversity

While he did not make the debate stage, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) has led the charge in calling for more diversity on the debate stage. Booker and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro were joined by all of the candidates appearing on Thursday’s debate in requesting the Democratic National Committee lower the qualification standards for debates in January and February. The topic could come up, given the attention it’s gotten in the run-up to the forum.

Labor rights

The Democratic Party has long maintained strong connections to the labor movement in the U.S., and those ties were on display earlier this week when all of the candidates pledged not to cross the picket line if Sodexo and Unite Here Local 11 did not come to an agreement. The candidates could receive some questions on how they would work with labor groups as president.

Environment

The issue of combatting climate change could also come up, given California’s struggle this year with wildfires. Environment advocate Greta Thunberg has also been in the news recently after being named Time’s Person of the Year. President Trump attacked her on Twitter after she received the award, saying she needed to work on anger management issues. Biden jumped to Thunberg’s defense, saying “What kind of president bullies a teenager?”

Health Care

The topic has played a role in most of the primary debates, with the progressive candidates pushing for a “Medicare for All” plan, while centrist candidates have advocated for building upon the Affordable Care Act, also known as ObamaCare. Expect this topic to come up as one of the party’s currently most hotly contested issues.

Who won’t be there?

– Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.)

– Former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro

– Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii)

– Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg

– Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick

– Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.)

– Author Marianne Williamson

Where can I watch the debate?

The debate will be broadcast on local PBS affiliates and will be simulcasted on CNN, CNN International and CNN en Español.

Viewers can also catch the debate via livestream on PBS NewsHour, POLITICO and CNN’s digital platforms.

Hill.TV will stream a live 30-minute pre-show, as well as a post-debate show on The Hill’s YouTube channel.