Last night, on Oct. 1, Governor Tim Walz and Senator James David “JD” Vance participated in the vice presidential debate. The debate started at 6 p.m., and was moderated by Norah O’Donnell and Margaret Brennan.
For the 2024 presidential election, there are less than 35 days until election day. According to Brookings, it is believed that this debate would not particularly make any large difference in voting, based on the fact that elections in the past typically have not been significantly affected by vice presidential debates.
“I see why the presidential debate is prioritized, because those are the two people who are going to be the main leaders of the country,” sophomore Ainsley Smith said. “However, I think it is important to watch both the presidential and vice presidential debates.”
The two sides clearly had disagreements on topics such as immigration and abortion. However, their debate did seem less heated to most, the night both starting and ending with the two shaking hands in the center, according to junior Cate Woeber.
“I liked how both candidates remained courteous towards each other throughout the debate.”
Overall, 42% of the debate watchers believe that Vance won the debate, 41% for Walz, and the last 17% said that it was a tie. As for the polling average for the presidential candidates, Kamala’s is currently 49% and Trump’s 46%, according to Project 538.
A few highlights of the debate were discussions about the January 6 insurrection and when prompts on gun control were covered. Overall, both had their fair share of stronger and weaker points, and the outcome appeared to be considerably even, depending on varying peoples’ perspectives, according to Smith.
“I definitely thought this debate was more civil than the presidential debate,” Smith said. “Now I can get a clearer view of what each party wants to do.”
