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The Candidates Face Off

Spanish Translation

By Kathyrn R. Satterfield

Senator John Kerry and President George W. Bush came out swinging at last Thursday's Presidential debate. Millions of TV viewers tuned in to the 90-minute matchup. Bush stressed that he had been a strong wartime President: "I've shown the American people I know how to lead." Kerry said the Iraq war was going in the wrong direction: "We need a fresh start, a President who can bring allies to our side." Both felt they scored points with voters.

Last week's debate, held at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida, was the first of three for Bush and Kerry. The topic was foreign policy. The candidates will face off again on October 8 in Saint Louis, Missouri, and on October 13 in Tempe, Arizona. The third meeting will focus on domestic issues, including education and health care. The candidates' running mates, Vice President Dick Cheney and Senator John Edwards, will meet on October 5 in Cleveland, Ohio.

Making the Connection
Debates are especially important in close contests such as this one. Voters not only want to hear what Bush and Kerry have to say about the issues but "they're watching to see who they feel comfortable with," Chris Lehane, a Democratic adviser, told TIME magazine.

Bush and Kerry have been working hard to connect with voters. The candidates have made numerous visits to so-called swing states, places where the race is so close it could go to either candidate. Both have visited Ohio dozens of times in the last six months. The state has 20 electoral votes. The candidates know that they have to win the states with the most people, which have the most Electoral College votes.

The key to victory may lie with the voters who currently say they have not yet settled on a candidate. In a TIME poll taken before the debate, 19% of voters said they were undecided. Of those, 69% say the debates may help them decide whom to choose.

Ralph Nader is on the ballot as a third-party candidate in more than 30 states. Nader is expected to get only a small percentage of votes. Still, Democrats fear that some likely Kerry voters will choose Nader instead. Party leaders say Nader may have cost Vice President Al Gore and the Democrats the White House in the 2000 election. "And he could easily do it again," Jano Cabrera of the Democratic National Committee told TIME.

Sifting through the Messages
As November 2 nears, swing-state voters will be bombarded with political ads and campaign visits. Together, Bush and Kerry have spent millions of dollars on TV ads.

Some campaign ads are created by groups called 527s, named for a tax law. In 2002, Congress passed legislation limiting how much money donors can give to a political party. The 527s sprung up when some groups realized the law would allow them to spend large amounts of money on political ads. Their messages are highly one-sided, and observers say many are mean-spirited. Both Bush and Kerry have condemned the ads.

Voters must sort through the conflicting claims and make a choice. Each candidate hopes his debate performances will help put him in the lead. Whose message will get through to the most voters? In less than a month, we will all find out.

Next: Election Fact File