Republican presidential debate on NBC News

The Republican presidential candidates are all vying to take on President Joe Biden in November 2024. But first, they’re competing in the GOP primaries and caucuses, which begin in January, to emerge as the party’s nominee.

Here are key things to know about the five GOP candidates who qualified for tonight’s debate:

Ron DeSantis: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, whose penchant for cultural clashes led him to declare his state as the place where “woke goes to die,” launched a bid for president in May 2023. DeSantis has said he is running to “reverse the decline” in America and to offer a new generation of leadership for the country. A hard-charging leader who has stretched the boundaries of executive power in his state, DeSantis rose to national prominence during the Covid-19 pandemic. He made Florida one of the first states to reopen schools, and took measures to prohibit lockdowns, mask mandates and vaccine requirements. Prior to the governor’s mansion, DeSantis represented a northeast Florida’s district in the US House from 2013 to 2018 and was a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus.

Nikki Haley: Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley launched her presidential campaign in February 2023, calling for a new generation of leadership in the Republican Party. Her campaign has heavily focused on economic responsibility, national security and strengthening the southern border. If successful in the primary, Haley would be the first woman and the first Asian American nominated by the GOP for president. She was first elected to the South Carolina House in 2004, and six years later, she became the first woman elected governor of the Palmetto State and the youngest governor in the nation when she took office in 2011. She resigned in the middle of her second term in 2017 to become US ambassador to the United Nations under President Donald Trump, now a rival for the 2024 GOP nomination. She served in that role until the end of 2018.

Tim Scott: South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate, entered the presidential race in May 2023, touting himself as a principled conservative with a distinctively hopeful and optimistic message. Scott began his political career with his election to the Charleston County Council in 1995. He later served a term in the South Carolina House before being elected to the US House in 2010. In 2013, then-Gov. Nikki Haley, now a rival for the GOP presidential nomination, appointed him to fill a vacant Senate seat, making him the first Black person to represent the Palmetto State in the Senate.

Vivek Ramaswamy: Tech entrepreneur and author Vivek Ramaswamy launched his outsider campaign for the presidency in February 2023, focused on combatting “woke” ideology, exposing…