How do you determine who won the debates? Do you judge on policy or spunk? If you judge on spunk and entertainment factor then I would say Gilles Duceppe won the debates.
That's right, I said it, Gilles Duceppe won the debates. He was be far the most entertaining. His answer on what would the his first act as Prime Minister be was clever, funny, and all too true.
Jack Layton had some good lines too, but was completely smacked by the reminder of his use of a private clinic. That was a great punch thrown by the Prime Minister and picked up by the other parties.
Elizabeth May looked a bit petty, she was clearly passionate, but was constant in her attacking of Stephen Harper. I also found that she had a hard time interjecting herself in the debate without help from the moderator.
Stephane Dion had some good jabs, but I swear I thought he was going to cry at the start. He was trying to look modest and earnest, but I thought he would cry. He didn't portray any strength or leadership. And, he managed to bring his team into the debates a bit too.
Stephen Harper looks calm, cool, and collected. Again as in the french debates he looked Prime Ministerial. I think he could have been more assertive, but was likely worried about looking too adversarial and partisan.
It was expected that all four leaders would gang up and attack Harper, and they certainly did attack him. He looked a little defensive, but held his own. The one thing I liked was he responded to most attacks with his policies and views and not partisan pettiness.
We're better off with Harper.
6 comments:
We are definatley better off with Harper.
That's a good question as there is no standard criteria out there. Here is what I consider when I pick a winner:
* Who had the most to gain? How much of it did they gain?
* Who had the most to lose? How much of it did they lose?
* Articulation of platform
* Ability to defend thy party
* Body language, body language, body language!
I have no set formula but that is what I consider, it's usually not too hard to pick a winner once you can answer those questions.
I'm curious to hear how others pick.
Matt
Your criteria is a very good one, and if applied to this debate, and fully considered I would pick Harper as a clear winner from the right, and Ms Day a winner from the left.
I meant May, not Day.
There is only one reliable way to judge who won a debate, and that is to see whose poll numbers go up the most afterward.
Most of what we perceive about people is subconscious. When asked the question immediately after the debate people will apply some criteria they think is appropriate and render an opinion. However, if someone has a gut feeling for someone, that will ultimately colour how they vote more than anything else. You really can't judge how this will play out - most people are completely unaware of their own biases.
So I guess we'll see in the days ahead. My own bias tells me it should be Harper. I hope I'm right.
It will be interesting to see the numbers over the next few days.
The debate format is inherently unfair for the PM, but he shouldn't lose much support I would suspect.
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