Charleston, S.C. (AP) – The Democratic primary field returns to the debate stage on Sunday night for the last matchup before the first round of voting next month, amid tightening poll numbers and an increasingly raucous race.
With Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders gaining on longtime front-runner Hillary Clinton in Iowa and New Hampshire, the debate is likely to mark a sharp departure from the relatively civil exchanges that defined the last three face-offs.
Both sides are readying sharp exchanges over a series of policy issues including gun control, taxes and health care.
The debate is scheduled to take place just blocks from the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, where nine parishioners were killed during Bible study in a mass shooting last summer. Gun control has emerged as a central theme in the race, with Clinton citing the issue as one of the major differences between the candidates.
On Saturday night, Sanders announced his support for legislation that would reverse a 2005 law granting gun manufacturers legal immunity that he once supported.