Vance dominated the debate against Walz, most importantly showcasing a softer side in a series of surprisingly civil exchanges.
Vance entered the debate confronting a paradox: He has probably been the most effective of the four major-party ticket nominees on the campaign trail, and he has certainly done the most interviews of the bunch, many of them adversarial. But polling also showed Vance to be the least liked.
Now the question is whether public attitudes about Vance are malleable enough to change at this point in the campaign. It is no surprise that the Hillbilly Elegy author and erstwhile commentator was a capable debater, whereas Walz reportedly warned Democrats he was not the strongest debater during the vice presidential selection process.
Read more post-debate analysis here.
