Donald Trump will be a no-show in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for the first Republican presidential primary debate tonight. The former president has seized the chance to snub TV hosts Fox News for not sucking up to him enough (fancy that!), leaving eight lesser rivals for the Republican nomination to slug it out for second place on the off-chance the 91 criminal charges facing Trump will finally bring him down.
Until recently there was only one contender for runner-up: Florida governor Ron DeSantis. But sharing the coveted centre spot on stage with him tonight will be Vivek Ramaswamy, a super-rich 38-year-old biotech entrepreneur who has been sprinting past better-known figures such as former vice-president Mike Pence, senator Tim Scott and ex-South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, and is threatening to finish off the ailing DeSantis.
