Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Supported by

Democrats Debate On The Strip, But Did Anyone Win?

Democratic presidential candidates from left, former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Hillary Rodham Clinton, former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, and former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee take the stage before the CNN Democratic presidential debate Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2015, in Las Vegas.
AP Photo/John Locher

Democratic presidential candidates from left, former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Hillary Rodham Clinton, former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, and former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee take the stage before the CNN Democratic presidential debate Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2015, in Las Vegas.

The first Democratic presidential debate is over.

And somebody won.

But after Americans watched the last two bare-knuckle Republican debates, was the winner the American people, or one of the candidates?

And did we learn anything new about the two Democratic frontrunners, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders?

Molly Ball, political writer for The Atlantic, told KNPR's State of Nevada that Hillary Clinton's biggest stumbling block going into the debate was the idea that she had a problem connecting with regular people and the feeling that she had been defensive when dealing with some of the issues that have arisen.

But Ball believes that changed in Tuesday's debate.

"I think that sort of dark cloud that sort of hung over Hillary Clinton's candidacy was really dissipated by her strong performance last night," Ball observed.

Political columnist Jon Ralston agreed with Ball's analysis. He said she came off as "relaxed and confident."

"I just thought that the other four didn't generally belong on the debate stage with Hillary Clinton," Ralston said.

Ball believes the former secretary of state's performance will ease the minds of the Democratic Party establishment and stop the effort to get Vice President Joe Biden to run.

"To the extent that the Biden boomlet has largely been a symptom of democratic unease over Hillary's problems, a lot of that momentum is going to disappear based on what people saw from Hillary Clinton," she said.

Ball believes the Clinton camp wants the debate to be a "turning point" for the campaign. 

Bernie Sanders is behind Clinton in the polls but he has been gaining momentum throughout the summer. 

Ball says Sanders' job during the debate was to get his name before a big audience, which he did.

He stuck to his campaign themes of income inequality and lifting up the middle class.  Ball pointed out that multiple focus groups watching the debate declared Sanders the winner.

"We know that there is this anti-establishment fervor out there in the electorate this year and Bernie Sanders appeal as an outsider is very strong and very real," she said.

However, Ralston said that while momentum and passion can help win elections, election infrastructure and organization, especially in states like Nevada, make the biggest difference.

"Sanders is way behind in Nevada," he said.

 

 

 

 

 

Molly Ball, political writer, The Atlantic; Jon Ralston, columnist, Reno Gazette-Journal and host of "Ralston Live"

Stay Connected
Joe Schoenmann joined Nevada Public Radio in 2014. He works with a talented team of producers at State of Nevada who explore the casino industry, sports, politics, public health and everything in between.