The Democratic presidential race is entering a crucial three-month stretch of the race that will test the mettle of the top candidates and determine whether their lesser-known and lesser-funded rivals will emerge as serious contenders or get kicked to the curb.

The post-Labor Day calendar is filled with milestones, including nationally televised debates, a fundraising deadline, and state- and local-party functions that could prove to be the last chance for some long-shot candidates to show they belong in the race.

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“A lot of the campaigns are going to have to do their groundwork in the next 3½ or 4 months in Iowa and New Hampshire,” said Bryce Smith, chair of the Dallas County Iowa Democrats. “This is the prime weather, the sun is still up until 8 o’clock at night and there are still things to do — festivals and farmers markets and stuff. After Thanksgiving, things start to shut down in a way and the sun sets sooner.”

The sun has already set on a few campaigns and odds are that the path to the nomination will be strewn with more casualties by Thanksgiving.

Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden remains the consensus front-runner, having sat atop most national and early primary state polls since entering the race in late April.

The 76-year-old, though, has struggled to shake the idea that his support is fragile and could crumble after a pair of lackluster debate performances and a series of verbal miscues that have reinforced his reputation as the king of gaffes….

Mr. Biden’s closest rivals, according to polls and fundraising reports, are Sens. Bernard Sanders of Vermont, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, and Kamala D. Harris of California, and South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg….

Meanwhile, those who failed to make the debate — including Montana Gov. Steve Bullock, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio — are now long shots.

“If you are not on that debate stage, you quickly start to become a memory in the eyes and ears of voters,” said Neil Levesque, executive director of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics and Chief of Staff at St. Anselm College. “That is a difficult position, and that is by design. The DNC wants to have the focus on those who could be a contender, not who is looking to sell a bestselling book.”…

(Excerpt from The Washington Times article by Seth McLaughlin.)