Cal State Long Beach students laughed and cheered while watching the final presidential debate at a debate watching party hosted by the department of communication at the Anatol Center Wednesday night.
The debate, which was held at University of Nevada Las Vegas, was the last chance for Republican nominee Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton to publicly discuss and debate their policies together on live TV.
At the debate watching party, associate professor of communication studies Amy Heyes said that the night gave students a better insight to both of the presidential candidates.
“The differences are clear by now,” she said. “Undecided voters should see clear from the muddy water before and clearly see the candidates now.”
Heyes commented that debates such as this one show democracy in action and bring everyone to the conversation.
While Trump is a successful businessman, Christopher Duerringer, associate professor of communication studies, said that doesn’t necessarily mean he’d be a good president.
“Mr. Trump appeals to the audience as ‘I’m a business man vote for me’,” he said. “Should a president act like a business man? Mr. Trump does not know what a president does.”
While the candidates discussed a variety of topics including supreme court appointments and national security, what stuck with freshman business administration major Francia Escudero was Clinton and Trump’s drastically different responses to the issue of abortion.
Women’s right over their bodies and abortion weighs largely on my vote,” she said. “I think Trump was giving no backups to his claims or his stances like on being pro-life.”
Sophomore pre speech language pathology major Kevyne Dantes agreed, saying that Trump can’t even explain his abortion stance.
“Trump says he’s pro-life but does not give any reasons why, he’s very ambiguous, he just wants votes,” she said. “I like that Hillary stands up for women’s rights, I like how she said that government should not interfere with what a woman wants to do with her pregnancy.”
Further, Dantes and Escudero both said they believe who the president appoints to the vacant supreme court seat will have an affect on abortion and other laws.
“This election is very important because of the next chosen judge, that judge will sway decisions, liberal or conservative,” Dantes said.
Escudero said she believes she already know the type of justice each of the candidates would appoint.
“Hillary wants to point a liberal judge that is for the people, she wants to represent all of us,” Escudero said, “But based on Trump’s opinions I believe he is going to choose a judge just like him.”
The presidential election will be held Nov. 8. To find your polling place, visit Headcount.