Washington DC - The Republican National Committee (RNC) has announced they will no longer be holding primary debates but will allow candidates to participate in events not sanctioned by the party.

According to Politico, the RNC shared the news in a statement on Friday.

"We have held four successful debates across the country with the most conservative partners in the history of a Republican primary," the statement explained.

"We have no RNC debates scheduled in January, and any debates currently scheduled are not affiliated with the RNC.

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"It is now time for Republican primary voters to decide who will be our next President, and candidates are free to use any forum or format to communicate to voters as they see fit."

Since the committee's first sanctioned debate back in August, each subsequent event has seen a drop in viewership.

The fourth debate, which was hosted by NewsNation in Alabama on Wednesday night, only brought in 4.1 million.

The RNC has faced criticism, most notably from candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who has called on chair Ronna McDaniel to step down.

Donald Trump, the GOP front-runner and perceived winner of the party's primary nomination, has refused to attend any of the events, instead holding his own counterprogramming around the same time.

CNN announced this week that they will be hosting two upcoming debates — one on January 10 in Iowa and another on January 21 in New Hampshire.