He was present through… his absence Donald Trump in the first debate of the eight candidates for the Republican nomination for the 2024 presidential election.

The eight candidates crossed swords yesterday, Wednesday, in their first debate, which was held in Milwaukee but in the absence of the big favorite Donald Trump.

The two-hour debate revealed the biggest challenge facing the eight candidates: ousting the former president from first place in the polls.

After Trump decided not to participate in the debate, his opponents turned on each other in an attempt to present themselves as the best alternative to the billionaire, five months before the first Republican primary in Iowa.

Although Florida Gov. Ron DeSandis is consistently second in the polls among Republicans, well behind Trump, 38-year-old Vivek Ramaswamy, a tech entrepreneur new to politics, was at the center of some of the debate’s most heated moments.

Ramaswamy, a staunch Trump defender who appears to be rising in the polls, has come under fire from his more seasoned opponents, who appear to see him as a bigger threat than DeSandis.

“You didn’t need to bring the beginner too”former US Vice President Mike Pence commented, while former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie accused Ramaswamy of sounding “like ChatGPT”.

The 38-year-old responded by presenting the fact that he is new to politics as an asset and accusing his opponents of “they’re sold out.” He also took a different stance on the war in Ukraine, saying it should not be a priority for the US and saying he would end military aid to Kiev.

This statement by Ramaswamy caused Nikki Haley’s strong reaction, former US ambassador to the UN.

The debate was seen as critical for DeSandis, whose campaign is struggling and his popularity is falling in polls.

Trump, who remains the front-runner for the Republican nomination despite four impeachment charges, chose not to take part in the debate and instead gave an interview to conservative host Tucker Carlson at the same time. This interview lasted 46 minutes and collected approx 74 million views on Platform X (formerly Twitter).

The former president refused to answer Carlson’s provocative questions, such as whether a civil war was imminent in the US. Instead he stuck to his favorite topics: his claims to have won the 2020 election, his pledge to tighten border controls and insults against US President Joe Biden and some of his Republican rivals.

“To sit there for an hour, two hours, as long as it takes, and to be harassed by people who shouldn’t even have run for president and a network that’s not particularly friendly to me?” Trump asked in response to a question about why he did not participate in the debate and referring to Fox News .

The debate took place a day before Trump surrender to Atlanta authorities to be formally charged with attempting to overturn the election result in Georgia.

Six of his eight opponents raised their hands yesterday when asked if they would support the former president even if he is convicted: DeSandis, Haley, Pence, Ramaswamy, North Dakota Gov. Doug Bergum and Sen. Tim Scott.

Only Christie and former Arkasno Gov. Isaiah Hutchinson have refused to raise their hand as they have strongly criticized Trump’s efforts to overturn the outcome of the 2020 election.

Polls show most Republicans view the charges against Trump as politically motivated.

The most recent Reuters/Ipsos poll in August has Trump ahead with 47% in the national voter intent, while DeSandis saw his share drop six points from July to 13%. The remaining candidates for the Republican nomination have single-digit percentages.

“Country in Decline”

The candidates also succeeded against Biden. Debate moderators Martha McCallum and Bret Baier, both Fox News anchors, opened the debate with questions about the US economy.

“Our country is in decline,” DeSandis said. “We need to reverse Bidenomics so that middle-class families have a chance to succeed again.”

Although the U.S. economy appears resilient, defying predictions of a recession, and the labor market remains strong, polls show that many voters—including many who supported Biden in 2020— they estimate that the economy has worsened during the first three years of his presidency amid persistent inflation.

The eight candidates were also asked about the issue of abortion, with Pence, her staunchest opponent, criticizing Haley who said there must be bipartisan agreement on the federal approach to the issue.

For his part, DeSandis, who has endorsed a law in Florida that bans abortions after the sixth week of pregnancy, did not specify whether he would support a similar measure at the national level. He emphasized, however, that “I will support life as governor and as president.”