LAS VEGAS — Mike Bloomberg, the billionaire former New York City mayor spending hundreds of millions of dollars in Utah and other states around the country in his bid for the White House, will join the Democratic presidential candidates on the debate stage for the first time Wednesday in Las Vegas.

He’ll be the one for Utahns to watch in the two-hour presidential primary debate that will be broadcast on KSL Ch. 5 starting at 7 p.m. Wednesday, after hitting 19% in a new NBC/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll, second to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, at 31%.

“Bloomberg is the biggest unknown storyline of this election season,” said independent pollster Scott Rasmussen, who conducts the Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics polls. “He has proven that if you spend $300 million around the country, you can do well in some polls.”

Including in Utah, where Bloomberg has dropped more than $2 million in advertising. Rasmussen’s polling for the Deseret News and the Hinckley Institute in January showed Bloomberg had the strongest showing against President Donald Trump in Utah, with 32% of Utah voters saying they’d vote for him compared to 45% for Trump.

Bloomberg will hold a post-debate rally in Salt Lake City on Thursday at Venue 6SIX9, 669 S. West Temple. Doors open at 8 a.m. for the 9 a.m. event. He also visited the state last month and Lauren Littlefield, his Utah state director, said support is growing for Bloomberg.

”We’ve seen a groundswell of support for Mike Bloomberg here in Utah, and we know that voters here are interested in seeing Mike join the other Democratic candidates on the debate stage tomorrow night,” Littlefield said in a statement Tuesday. “We are excited to hear Mike make the case to Utah voters that he is the best candidate to defeat Donald Trump and unite the country.”

In Wednesday’s debate, Rasmussen said Bloomberg “will attract a lot of attention and a lot of heat. Not just because he’s doing well in the polls, because many of the other campaigns seem to resent the way he’s gone about it. He didn’t get in at the beginning, he didn’t go through these early states. He just opened his checkbook.”

Related:

Rivals take pre-debate shots as Bloomberg faces major test

Hours before taking the stage, Mike Bloomberg came under attack from his Democratic rivals in a likely preview of his Wednesday night debate debut when the billionaire businessman confronts his rivals for the first time.

Bloomberg is not competing in the four early voting states — Iowa and New Hampshire, where Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg were top finishers, or in Nevada, where caucus day is Saturday, or in South Carolina’s Feb. 29 primary.

So how Bloomberg performs in his first debate could have a big impact on how well he does in Utah’s March 3 presidential primary. Utah is one of more than a dozen states holding elections on what’s known as Super Tuesday.

“I do think that is the most significant thing about the debate tomorrow night,” Rasmussen said. “But the other thing obviously that Utah voters ought to be considering as they watch the other candidates is whoever they are considering, this is a chance to hear a little bit more.”

Chris Karpowitz, co-director of BYU’s Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy, also said Bloomberg’s participation in the debate is important, since “it’s likely the first time he’s pressed on some of the more controversial elements of his record” as mayor, including a stop-and-frisk policy aimed at minorities.

“Having to respond about these issues is quite different than spending money on well-produced advertisements,” Karpowitz said. “Given that Bloomberg has been spending in Utah, it will be especially important to see how Utahns evaluate his responses.”

Monday night, Buttigieg attracted some 4,500 Utahns to an event at The Union for a rally, according to estimates released by his campaign. He told KSL he has volunteers rather than “the resources of a billionaire” to deliver his message in one of the most Republican states in the nation.

Buttigieg said his slim lead in the Democratic delegate count after Iowa and New Hampshire shows “it’s not just about how famous you are or how much money you have.” He said he understands how to compete in a conservative state.

“I know the feeling because again, I’ve governed as a Democratic mayor in a deeply conservative state like Indiana. What I found is there are opportunities not only to continue to grow our Democratic base with our strong values, but also to invite a lot of independents into our ranks,” he said, as well as “future, former Republicans.”

Karpowitz said the big turnout for Buttigieg in Salt Lake City “indicates that there is an interest — or at least some curiosity — in finding out more about the candidates and in hearing what they say to Utah audiences.” He noted Buttigieg made a point of saying “religious commitments should not be the province of a single political party.”

Sanders won the 2016 presidential caucus vote in Utah, easily beating the party’s eventual nominee, Hillary Clinton. His campaign held an event in Salt Lake City to energize volunteers on Monday evening. On Tuesday, the Sanders campaign said four staffers have been hired in Utah and a state headquarters is opening in Salt Lake City.

But Sanders, along with other candidates including former Vice President Joe Biden, who held a fundraiser in Park City last year, and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, have yet to schedule events in Utah in advance of Super Tuesday. Nor has Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who held a campaign rally in Salt Lake City last April.

“Buttigieg, Bloomberg, Klobuchar and even Biden have the potential to appeal to more moderate voters in the state, including Republicans who are uncomfortable with Trump,” Karpowitz said. “Wednesday’s debate is a great opportunity for Utah voters who are just starting to pay attention.”

Related topics