3 Candidates Plan to Raise Funds Through Debate-Watching Parties

WASHINGTON — Three Democratic presidential candidates were hoping to not only impress millions of viewers in the nationally televised debate Tuesday night but also to raise money at thousands of debate-watching parties across the country.

Rep. Richard A. Gephardt of Missouri had the most ambitious plans, calling for 2,000 parties covering all 50 states to gather $250,000 in contributions. Gephardt, who has borrowed $400,000 against his federal matching funds, hopes the latest contributions will generate another $250,000 in such matching dollars from the U.S. Treasury.

Massachusetts Gov. Michael S. Dukakis planned more than 1,100 “Duke Debate” parties around the country, but he set no fund-raising goal. Some of the Dukakis parties were to feature a videotaped introduction by the candidate.

Former Arizona Gov. Bruce Babbitt, whose performance in the first televised debate in July was judged poor enough to cause subsequent campaign problems, planned 185 parties with a goal of $10,000 to $15,000 for his financially strapped effort.

Babbitt’s house parties were to start with a videotape of his “Greatest Debate Hits” and an introduction from Babbitt to the issues he planned to raise during the NBC-sponsored debate at the Kennedy Center.