Lauren Niezgoda and Alexis Hulse || Sidney Stump/The Whetstone
By Sidney Stump, The Whetstone
Junior Shannon Hollingsworth watched the first 2016 presidential debate between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton.
“There was no clear winner,†Hollingsworth said.
Hollingsworth reflects the reason why many experts say that presidential debates actually aren’t important when it comes to swaying voters one way or another.
“Evidence does not support that debates have much of an impact,†Political Scientist Dr. Anthony Armstrong said.
Many students at Wesley said that they didn’t watch the debate at all.
“No, I didn’t watch, I’m not interested in either candidate,†senior Lauren Niezgoda said.
She said she had already made up her mind about this election and didn’t waste time watching.
“I had much more important priorities,†freshman Alexis Hulse said referring to her school project.
Political Scientist Dr. Cynthia Newton said the debates are not as important to voters’ decision-making as you might think.
“It’s important to the runners, but there’s so much more to deciding who to vote for then just talking,†she said.
Wesley students who watched said they had a strong opinion before.
“All I really got out of this debate was them counteracting each other,†sophomore Sidney Knott said. “No one really persuaded me either way.â€
Other students who watched the debate said they already knew who they wanted to vote for and still had the same opinion after the debate.
“I think Trump won,†senior Ricky Mulloy said. “He brought up good points about becoming independently strong as a country. The debate just confirmed who I’m voting for, it didn’t change my mind.â€
Junior Betty Lee said the debate confirmed her opinion of Clinton.
“Hillary won,†she said. “She was prepared, composed, and Trump walked right into her traps. Definitely confirmed who I was voting for.â€
One of the reasons why the debates may not matter has nothing to do with reason.
“People respond to emotions, not facts,†Armstrong said.
