WASHINGTON — The next Republican presidential debate seems likely to feature six or seven candidates, rather than the nine who crowded onto last week’s stage.

Fox Business News, which is hosting the Jan. 14 debate in South Carolina, announced Tuesday the criteria it will use for picking who gets invited.

To be on the main stage, a candidate will have to place among the top six in national polls or the top five in polls of either New Hampshire or Iowa, the states that hold the first two contests of the nominating season.

The final choices will be based on the five most recent polls released by 6 p.m. Jan. 11 from organizations whose surveys meet Fox’s criteria.

Based on the polling to date, the top six candidates nationally would be Donald Trump, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, Ben Carson, Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey and Jeb Bush, the former governor of Florida.

John Kasich, the governor of Ohio, would have a good shot at joining those six based on his standing in New Hampshire polls. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky might make it onto the stage based on polling in Iowa.

The other candidates, who probably would include Carly Fiorina, Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum and George Pataki, would be relegated to the undercard round.