The Student Voting Task Force hosted a live stream exhibition of the first presidential debate Oct. 3 in Rueckert Auditorium. The event counted with the presence of students and faculty members who were trying to clarify their ideas about the candidates.

The debate itself took place at Hofstra University in New York. It had the representative of each major party answering significant questions about their government plan if they get elected. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump were the chosen candidates for the Democratic and Republican parties, respectively.

Some of the questions focused on their plans for the country about jobs, taxes, race issues and other subjects. The audience in Rueckert appeared amused by the interaction between the candidates. There were moments where students would laugh about the situation, but the common feeling was the concern about the answers given by Clinton and Trump.

After the debate, a few students and a couple of faculty members stayed at the auditorium, engaging in a discussion about how the debate went, each one’s opinions about the candidates and how they positioned themselves.

When asked about the overall view of what was expected from the debate, Assistant Professor of Philosophy Jennifer Kling said, “I thought it was fairly routine. It was almost precisely what I expected. I thought Hillary Clinton came off as more straight-forward and honest than she sometimes does. I thought Donald Trump was relatively calm, which was impressive because sometimes can say things that are wildly off-base.”

From the student perspective, Taylor Bissett said, “The debate definitely helped clarify my thoughts on the election. I wasn’t really sure where I stood because of all of the propaganda that is fed to us through the media, but just listening to them made my decision very clear.”