First Democratic Debate To Take Place Tuesday Night

All five Democratic presidential candidates will take the stage Tuesday night in Las Vegas in their first prime-time debate. But there is a podium on standby in case another candidate jumps in the race.

A sixth podium is said to be on standby for Vice President Joe Biden should he make a last minute decision to enter the race. While that's unlikely, five other hopefuls will be there for sure.

Hillary Clinton and her top rival Bernie Sanders will square off on the issues Tuesday night on CNN. The Vermont Senator has closed the polling gap on Clinton in Iowa and overtaken her in New Hampshire.  

Lower-polling candidates Jim Webb and Lincoln Chafee will also take part in the debate. Experts said Former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley, who has so far flown under the radar, is more likely to go after Clinton than Sanders.

The GOP front runner on the Democratic Debate, Donald Trump, said he doesn't expect the ratings will be great because he won't be on the stage.