Will the Debates Affect the Election More Than the Storm?

In this society where the important thing is winning and losing, debates are just small scale of what is to come of the election guaranteeing them a win or loss…or is that what we are made to think? After the first debate when it was evident that Romney won and the polls jumped dramatically for him. However, after the second and third debates, the polls were in a dead heat. According to an article from The Washington Monthly Magazine, political pundits and strategists believe in a notion of “game changers” which are things said or done in a debate that will make an effect on the outcome of the election “A more careful study by political scientist James Stimson finds little evidence of game changers in the presidential campaigns between 1960 and 2000. Stimson writes, ‘There is no case where we can trace a substantial shift to the debates.’”

Later in the article, it says that for most of the voters who watch the debates, their minds are already made up and it doesn't matter what happens in the debate, they are just learning new information. This is the exact same argument Brady made in class a week or two ago. “Instead of the debates affecting who they will vote for, their party loyalty affects who they believe won the debates,” states the article.

It seems to me that debates don’t have any real impact on the outcome of the election. However, in the case of the jump in Romney’s poll numbers after the first debate, I think it was because the debate had an impact on voters. This was the first debate where voters could actually see Romney for what his vision is for the country if he were to become president and after his stellar performance compared to the lack of one from the President, he was seen by undecided as well as Republican voters as someone to rally behind because the President lacked the fervor to stand up for what he wanted to say. I think in that sense, the debates did help to increase the strength of the Republican nominee and party which in turn affected the election in the sense that it is a close race. More than anything, what will affect the election the most is the damage done to 10 states because of Hurricane Sandy. All of the states impacted are leaning or strongly for Obama,  and it will be hard for those places currently underwater or have lots of damage from the storm to be able to go out and vote for the President. This will definitely make for an interesting election.