On September 29, Steven Machat, an independent candidate for U.S. Senate in Florida, sued the Cox Media Group in federal court over his exclusion from their debates. However, on October 5, his case was dismissed on procedural grounds. He represented himself and it appears he didn’t allege there is a federal question of law in his case. Machat v Cox Media Group, s.d. Florida, 1:16cv-24155.

The U.S. Senate debates in Florida are October 17 and October 26. Only the Republican and Democratic nominees have been invited.