Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Ohio Sen. JD Vance took to the debate stage on Tuesday night in New York City for the only scheduled vice presidential debate. The 90-minute event was moderated by CBS hosts Norah O’Donnell and Margaret Brennan and covered topics ranging from the impact of climate change on Hurricane Helene to drug trafficking across the U.S.-Mexico border. 

Early on in the debate, Walz expressed his support for abortion rights and noted that Vance’s running mate, former President Donald Trump, has repeatedly credited himself for the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Trump has frequently stated support for abortion rights being “left up to the states.”

During the debate, however, Vance revealed his own reservations about his party’s stance on abortion, saying that the Republican party needs to do a better job of “earning the American people’s trust back on this issue.”

“There’s so much we can do, just on the public policy front, to give women more options,” Vance said.

Vance also advocated for an increase in funding for programs designed to support expectant parents and new families, a theoretical policy that Walz also supports but said was not addressed by the Trump-Vance campaign.

The debate was generally respectful; the candidates even admitted that they agreed with each other on some issues. They shook hands before and after the debate, and their wives both came on stage after the debate. 

Diana Kritikos, a senior at DePaul University studying political science and economics, was surprised by the strength of the candidates’ performance. Kritikos remarked on the civility and lack of personal attacks.

“I thought they spoke to each other with respect … and targeted the priorities of the majority of Americans,” Kritikos said.

Late in the debate, Walz asked Vance whether he believed Trump lost the 2020 presidential election. Vance declined to answer and instead discussed censorship.

“That is a damning non-answer,” Walz said.

Emma Kate Bretzlaff, a DePaul student who plans to vote for Harris and Walz, acknowledged Walz’s nerves and flustery attitude and the impact on his performance, but found Vance “frightening.”

“Senator Vance’s ability to play the middle of the road while also saying despicable things about women, immigrants and marginalized Americans at other events make me worry he is more electable than (I) expected,” Bretzlaff said.

During the debate, when moderator Brennan fact-checked the candidates concerning the immigration status of Haitian migrants, Vance continued to speak, saying that since the moderators fact-checked him against the rules, he felt it “important to say what’s going on.”

He continued to speak, referencing the U.S. Customs and Border Protection app, also called CBP One, which he claimed aids non-citizens living in the United States in gaining citizenship.

The mobile application was launched by U.S. Customs and Border Protection to serve as a single portal to direct users to the CBP services they need. The app was launched on Oct. 28, 2020 during the Trump administration.

Moderators attempted to move on from the discussion of immigration, as one of the moderators responded, “Thank you, Senator, for describing the legal process.”

Vance’s microphone was cut off, at which point the debate continued.

CBS News had previously stated that it would be up to the candidates to fact-check each other.

Malia Bowers, a political science lecturer at DePaul, emphasized the importance of the debate for Vance, who has only held public office since January 2023.

“This is a relatively young and clearly ambitious politician that I’m confident wants a career long after Trump is done,” Bowers said, adding that Vance attempted to “keep his boss happy while also raising his own stock for his own sake.”

Bowers also said that the reception and influence of the debate among voters remains tough to predict.

“Since there was only one presidential debate between Trump and Harris, I would expect this debate to be much more influential than the standard B-list status of most VP debates,”  Bowers said.

The initial results of a CBS News poll found that 42% of debate watchers believed that Vance won, 41% believed Walz won, and 17% of viewers thought the debate was tied. 

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