The DePaul Democrats and College Republicans will be debating crime, the economy, education reform and the environment on October 28 at 6:45 p.m. in Student Center 120 A&B.

The debate it being dubbed the “Sheffield Scuffle”.

Nicole Been, the president of DePaul College Republicans, said that they decided to debate to help inform students’ opinions for the upcoming November elections.

“We feel like it can really help a lot of the students who maybe don’t know which party they affiliate with yet understand the platforms and ideas of each group,” Been said.

“We are all really good friends, too, so we thought a little friendly competition wouldn’t hurt,” Been said.

Been said at last year’s debate the Democrats won, and Frank Schmitt of the College Republicans said that the parties were “cordial” and “polite” to one another.

“The negativity that often clouds politics was absent,” Schmitt said. “That’s what is so great about DePaul… although we have different beliefs, we get along very well.”

“The Democrats won the debate pretty handily,” Michael Rance, president of the DePaul College Democrats, said about last year’s debate. “A vast majority of the audience polled [and] agreed that the Democrats debated more effectively.”

Rance added that the debate is a great way to inform students about the importance of being politically engaged during election season and beyond, and that it will be “focused on the facts and not the typical partisan dogma that you hear on the daily news.”

“We will be debating the issues in a way that is productive and informative, and in a way that is also very relatable to the rest of the DePaul student body,” Rance said.

The debate will last about an hour and a half, and free refreshments will be provided.

“People should come because they can learn a lot from some of the most politically minded and active students at DePaul,” Been said.

“We are adults now and will be living in the real world soon, so students need to pay more attention to who gets elected and what their policies are and how they will affect them in the future.”