Republican Debate Drinking Game 2016: Best Rules For When To Sip, Gulp And Guzzle During Fox News GOP Showdown

GOPDebate — The Republican presidential candidates participate in the Fox Business Network Republican debate on Jan. 14, in North Charleston, South Carolina. Scott Olson/Getty Image

Donald Trump has said he will not attend Thursday night’s Republican presidential debate, and that’s reason enough for some to drink. But if you’re still planning on watching the GOP debate, you may want to make the evening a bit more fun with an official drinking game.

The candidates — sans Trump — will face off in Des Moines, Iowa, Thursday night, just days before the Iowa caucuses mark the first presidential voting of 2016. The undercard debate starts at 7 p.m. EST, and the main stage showdown will take place at 9 p.m. EST. You can tune in on Fox News or live-stream the debate on the channel’s website.

Even without Trump, there are plenty of candidates left on the stage, and they’ll all be vying for voter attention during this pivotal event. The debates have gotten slightly more substantive over time, but it is difficult to tell how The Donald’s absence will affect the other candidates Thursday night. Will they spend the whole evening talking about him even though he’s not there, or will they breathe a sigh of relief and try to get out their policy stances without attacking the New York billionaire?

Regardless of how the debate goes down, these rules will help make sure you have a good time. Here are the best drinking game rules, collected from Debate Drinking and the Chicago Sun-Times.

Take one sip if the candidates say any of these often-used words and phrases: