WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke has just enough support to qualify for a televised debate in Louisiana's Senate race.
A survey by Raycom Media found that Duke met the 5 percent threshold needed to participate in the debate, which will be held at Dillard University, a historically black university in New Orleans.
'Important News! I qualified for the U.S. Senate most important debate in Louisiana on Nov 2. I can't wait to tell truth nobody else dares!' Duke said in a post on twitter.
Duke is not expected to be a factor in Louisiana's all-party primary on Election Day, but his participation in the debate will give him an opportunity to express his controversial views to a wider audience.
When announcing his run for the Senate, Duke suggested that Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and other Americans are embracing his ideas.
Trump drew considerable criticism earlier this year for his apparent reluctance to disavow an endorsement from Duke.
The Raycom Media poll showed Republican State Treasurer John Kennedy in the lead at 24 percent, followed by Democratic Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell at 19 percent.
Democratic attorney Caroline Fayard came in third at 12 percent, with Republican congressmen Charles Boustany, R-La., and John Fleming, R-La., at 11 and 10 percent, respectively.
If no candidate wins a majority of the vote on November 8th, the top two vote-getters will go head-to-head in a runoff on December 10th.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX