Ohio | Graphic by Emily Lewis | The Wright State Guardian
As election day approaches, the two candidates running for Ohio Senator face off in a town hall debate on Fox News.
About the candidates
Tim Ryan and J.D. Vance are running head-to-head in the Ohio senate race, culminating on election day on Nov. 8, 2022. The winner will replace current Ohio Senator Rob Portman.
The democratic nominee, Tim Ryan, has served as a congressman in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2002. The republican nominee, J.D. Vance, is a marine, author, lawyer and businessman.
The town hall event
Tim Ryan and J.D. Vance both discussed topics for 30 minutes each during the debate on Fox News, which took place on Nov. 1. The two candidates sat down with Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum to discuss important topics.
The topics discussed included inflation, the overall political climate, crime and community safety, immigration, employment and election integrity. Some specific topics were the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, the Inflation Reduction Act and the Jan. 6 attack.
Throughout the debate, audience members were able to ask questions as well.
According to Ryan, Roe v. Wade should have never been overturned, whereas opponent Vance believes in a 15-week abortion ban.
“It provides reasonable exceptions, but it also sets a minimum national standard, and I think that’s a good idea,” Vance said.
When it comes to inflation and the economy, Ryan firmly supports the Inflation Reduction Act.
“Once we passed that, we saw huge investments into the solar industry,” Ryan said. Vance disagreed.
Vance commented strongly on election integrity.
“I happen to think the biggest threat to American democracy today is big technology companies in bed with the communist Chinese who are censoring information about American politics,” Vance explained.
On the topic of crime – spurred on by the political climate – the two nominees discussed the attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi. Both candidates provided condolences.
“What happened to Paul Pelosi, I think, is an absolute tragedy. I don’t care what your politics are,” Ryan said.
Vance also noted some personal areas of concern with the attack.
“I think the effort to turn this into a political issue actually is a real problem here, because Paul Pelosi was attacked by a person who's an illegal alien in our country and should not have been here in the first place,” Vance said.
David Depape, Pelosi’s attacker is originally from Canada but is a long term resident of California, according to the Associated Press.
Ryan was booed by the crowd during a discussion about a police officer who passed during the Jan. 6 attack. The hosts of the debate, Baier and MacCallum, calmed the crowd.
The crowd later applauded Ryan after further explanation.
“Again, I don’t care what your politics are, but Americans should say no. We have to say no to that stuff,” Ryan said in reference to the Jan. 6 incident at the Capital.
For more information about the candidates before the Nov. 8 election, students can visit Vance’s and Ryan’s official websites.
