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The Primary Debates Will Showcase Candidates’ Personalities More Than Their Policies
Viewers are more likely to walk away from the debates with opinions on who these candidates are as people — not as politicians
On Wednesday and Thursday, 20 of the 25 Democrats running for president will debate one another, 10 at a time. Each debate will last two hours and will be moderated by a panel of five journalists. Given that there will be 10 candidates on stage for a two-hour event, each candidate can expect to have between five to 10 minutes of speaking time — an allotment that encourages candidates to lean into their bravado more than their brains.
Public reaction to presidential debates has famously focused on non-substantive aspects of the debate, such as candidates’ physical presence or attractiveness. Ever since John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon debated in the first televised presidential debate in 1960, scholars have questioned whether people place more value on substance or polish. Indeed, research shows that while televised debates help voters learn about policy, voters don’t necessarily use that knowledge once they’re in the voting booth. Rather, viewers tend to vote based on their judgments about candidates’ personalities. It’s not just voting: One recent study of 2012…
