Harris v. Trump debate rules in place for September 10
The biggest sticking point of negotiations was whether mics would be muted during parts of the debate.
Reaffirming Erie County’s status as a bellwether county, CNN will broadcast live and interview voters at Mercyhurst University during Tuesday’s presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.
To gauge real-time reactions, CNN will find and assemble a focus group of Erie County voters, preferably undecided, who will watch the debate together at Mercyhurst and provide instantaneous feedback using a technique called dial-testing, according to a Mercyhurst news release.
More: We want to know what Pa. voters think of Tuesday’s presidential debate
Dial-testing involves participants using hand-held dials to continuously record their responses to specific moments in the debate, allowing CNN to capture nuanced reactions as they happen, the release stated.
Following the debate, CNN will go live to Mercyhurst, where CNN anchor Phil Mattingly will interview members of the focus group for their reactions.
Mercyhurst Director of Public Relations Debbie Morton said CNN contacted the university a couple of weeks ago about doing the broadcast. She said the university was likely chosen because of Mercyhurst political analyst Joe Morris, who’s been interviewed by local, national and international media outlets since the 2016 presidential election.
“Erie is getting a lot of attention and CNN is picking up on that,” Morton said.
Erie has been a significant indicator in recent elections.
Trump won Erie County in 2016 by just 1,957 votes after voters here twice backed former President Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012. It was one of only 206 counties nationwide to make the flip. In 2020, it was President Joe Biden who captured the county — and the state — winning by a 1,417-vote margin.
Morris stated in the release that Pennsylvania has held 25 statewide elections for president, senator, governor, attorney general, treasurer, or auditor since 2008.
“In 23 of those 25 elections, Erie County voted for the winner. And voters there didn’t simply support one side. They voted for 20 Democratic candidates and five Republican candidates, including Trump for president,” he stated.
A.J. Rao can be reached at arao@gannett.com. Follow him on X @ETNRao.
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Publish date : 2024-09-06 09:59:00
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