The first of many democratic debates took place Tuesday night in Las Vegas introducing the public to the likes of Hilary Clinton, Bernie Sander, Martin O’Malley, Jim Webb and Lincoln Chafee. Moderating the debate was CNN news anchor and journalist Anderson Cooper, whose home network was also hosting the debate. Surprisingly most candidates stuck to the issues, played to their strengths and perhaps most surprisingly, strayed as far away as possible from insulting one another in what was a well-run and informative debate.
Hilary Clinton came out strong, pushing the issues she’s always championed and according to recent polls, appealed the most to democratic voters. Clinton currently leads almost every poll in her bid for nomination as well. Bernie Sanders also emerged as a strong debater and at the moment he stands as the only real competition to Hilary Clinton. Sanders spoke on issues such as tax reform, income disparity, as well as climate change, but most voters say Sanders only strongly appealed to his current group of close knit supporters instead of reaching across the party to gather more democratic support. Sanders biggest issue during his campaign has been the fact he is often criticized for not being electable enough because he refuses to broaden his appeal.
On the other hand, Martin O’Malley, Jim Webb and Lincoln Chafee fit the democratic mold, but were not outstandingly impressive according to post-debate polls. Luckily all the candidates have a few months and a handful of more debates before the primaries begin. Time will only tell how the race shapes up to be and if Hilary Clinton can remain the powerful front runner.