Miami Mayor Francis Suarez deleted a video from social media Tuesday celebrating making the GOP's first debate stage — after the Republican National Committee released a list of those who made it that didn't include him.
"I'm very excited to let you all know that we have qualified for the first GOP debate," says Suarez in the video posted to X on Aug. 18, adding that meeting the criteria for the debate was the "beginning of an incredible moment for our country."
The video, posted Friday, featured Suarez speaking straight to camera in a baseball hat emblazoned with the American flag, celebrating his self-proclaimed debate stage qualification.
Three days later, the RNC announced their debate stage lineup — without Suarez's name.
Upon learning he would not be allowed to participate in the debate, Friday's video vanished from Suarez’s timeline, and a statement explaining his confusion with the RNC’s polling criteria appeared.
“On Thursday afternoon, in consultation with the RNC, we believed the polling requirement would be met by two polls that were yet to be reported,” wrote Suarez on his X account on Tuesday.
The future of Suarez's presidential campaign remains unclear. On Aug. 11, responding to NBC News' question as to whether or not he will continue his run for the presidency if he doesn't make the debate, the mayor said: “If you can’t meet the minimum thresholds, you shouldn’t be trying to take time and volume away from people that do."
And last week, when NBC News host Chuck Todd asked Suarez, "Are you going to live by those words?" Suarez responded, "I will. But I'm going to make the debate stage. I can tell you that."
Suarez's campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether the mayor plans to continue his campaign or why the post was deleted.
