On Tuesday, October 1 the Dickinson community came together in the HUB Social Hall to watch the Vice Presidential debate between Senator JD Vance and Governor Tim Walz. President of College Democrats, Ryan Bergh Thies ’25, gave some comments before the debate, “It means a lot that Vance is going to debate, it means a lot that Walz is going to debate, this is what’s good for democracy.”
During the debate, the Dickinson crowd was much less riled up than at the presidential debate last month. As noted by many, this debate was much more civil and less entertaining. The candidates were more focused on discussing policy issues and defending their top-of-ticket candidates rather than delivering personal attacks.
During the middle of the debate, a few people offered their opinions. Trace Maneval ’27, vice president of College Republicans, said, “I think that Senator Vance and Governor Walz have both been very poised and composed and doing a fair job of presenting their arguments.” Both candidates had their weak moments as well, Maneval noted. “The discrepancy of Walz’s trips in Hong Kong and China was a bad moment for him,” while many students laughed when Vance had an argument with the moderators over the presence of fact-checking during the debate.
Throughout the debate, many issues were addressed, primarily concerning the economy, abortion, immigration and healthcare. Barrett Riley ’27, treasurer of College Democrats, said, “I think it [the debate] was similar to things that we would have seen 10 years ago, before the Trump era.” This was a sentiment shared by multiple people; Jack Fechter ’26 said, “It reminded me a lot of 2008, McCain versus Obama, in the sense that it was very civil.”
Dylan Stroppa ’27 said “They both had a good night, they had a good policy for what you’d expect from the Republican or Democratic nominee.” Something that Bergh Theis wanted to say to all students is to “just listen. Listen from your debates with folks and have an open mind.”
Watch-party events such as the one held in the HUB are there to inform the student body about the candidates as well as bring the community together. To register to vote, there are many resources around campus such as Dickinson Votes which will help those who are interested sign up to vote in Carlisle. Visit https://www.dickinson.edu/votes/ for more information.