South Carolina Democratic debate live updates

Updated 5m ago

CBS News debate moderators on what's at stake in Charleston

“CBS This Morning” co-host Gayle King and CBS Evening News anchor and managing editor Norah O'Donnell will co-moderate Tuesday night's Democratic debate in South Carolina. They'll be joined in questioning by “60 Minutes” correspondent Bill Whitaker, chief Washington correspondent Major Garrett and “Face the Nation” moderator and senior foreign affairs correspondent Margaret Brennan. The five of them break down what's on the line for the candidates.

Updated 15m ago

Sanders could face scrutiny after controversial comments on Cuba

Sanders may face more criticism on the debate stage for saying that Cuban dictator Fidel Castro raised literacy rates during his regime. In an interview with “60 Minutes” which aired Sunday, Sanders said it is “unfair to simply say everything is bad” about the communist government.

Sanders doubled down on this position in a CNN town hall with Buttigieg and Steyer Monday evening, saying “truth is truth.” However, Sanders emphasized that he is “critical of all authoritarian regimes all over the world including Cuba,” although he believes “teaching people to read and write is a good thing.”

Several Democrats slammed Sanders for his comments, including Buttigieg, who has singled Sanders out as a threat to the Democratic Party.

“I don't want as a Democrat to be explaining why our nominee is encouraging people to look on the bright side of the Castro regime when we are going into the election of our lives,” Buttigieg said in the CNN town hall Monday night.

Democrats in Florida, which has a large Cuban population, also expressed dismay at Sanders' comments. Democratic National Committee spokeswoman Xochitl Hinojosa pushed back against Sanders' comments in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday afternoon.

“I will let Bernie Sanders speak for his comments, but we are very clear in the Democratic Party that we speak out against brutal dictatorships like those of Castro and we support the people of Cuba, fleeing Cuba under that dictatorship,” Hinojosa said. She also urged all candidates to travel to Florida and speak with Cuban emigrants and their families before making comments about the Cuban government.

Updated 53m ago

Will Democratic voters who oppose abortion rights sit out the South Carolina primary?

Some Democratic voters who oppose abortion rights may sit out the South Carolina primary, CBS News' Kate Smith reports, as every candidate supports access to abortion. A recent Pew poll found that 20% of Democratic voters believe abortion should be illegal, meaning that this is a critical issue for a not-insignificant chunk of the party.

“This is not a group of people that the candidates should be discounting, and not one that we should be ignoring,” Smith said. These voters are also wondering if there is any room for them in the party, as candidates such as frontrunner Sanders have believe abortion to be a fundamental health care right.

However, pro-abortion access groups such as Planned Parenthood are spending record amounts to convince supporters that this is an essential election fight.

Updated 4:23 PM

“Biden has to do well in South Carolina,” says Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook

CBS News political contributors Terry Sullivan and Robby Mook, Marco Rubio and Hillary Clinton's respective 2016 campaign managers, join “CBS This Morning” to discuss what to expect from the candidates.

Updated 4:02 PM

What to read before the debate

Free Traffic Real Traffic At Your Finger Tips

Get Traffic With Zero Money Down

Join with bonus

Updated 3:58 PM

How to watch the Democratic debate

• Date: Tuesday, February 25
• Time: 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET. 
• Watch on TV: The debate will air on CBS stations.
• Live stream online: Stream on CBSN via the video player above or across a number of devices, including Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV. You can also watch live on CBS All Access with a free trial. The debate will be live-streamed on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. 
  
  
• Analysis and spin room: Coverage of the spin room will begin at 10 p.m. ET and will be carried on CBS stations, CBS All Access, CBSN and in the video player above.
• Live updates: Follow along on here CBSNews.com.

Updated 4:02 PM

What voters want to ask the candidates

Ahead of the debate, CBS News asked voters across the country about what questions they would like answered by the field of Democratic candidates. Their questions covered everything from immigration, to climate change, to health care.  

Shannon Creswell said she switched from being a Democrat to an Independent “due to the DNC failures on the current platform.”

She said she wanted to ask candidates, “if you were the nominee, how as the de facto leader of the Democratic party, would you do damage control… and woo back people like myself?”

Read more about questions to the candidates here.

Updated 4:02 PM

Biden still leads with black voters in the state

Among black voters in South Carolina, Biden still holds a lead, although his lead has narrowed since November. According to CBS News Battleground Tracker on February 23, Biden had 35%, followed by Steyer at 24% and Sanders at 23%. 

Biden has lost ground with white voters, too. He led with whites in November, but Sanders does now.