Mississippi State University Students debated political issues as varied as their majors at Wednesday night’s mock presidential debate on the campus at Bettersworth Auditorium in Lee Hall.
The debate featured students from the university’s three politically affiliated student organizations: the College Republicans, College Democrats and Young Americans for Liberty.
During round one, education, it was asked how to make higher education more affordable and accessible to students. 
In round two, economics, it was asked how government funds could improve infrastructure and the economy. 
Round three’s questions came from audience submissions posing questions from social media’s influence on the election, second amendment rights and whether the Constitution is a living document.
Although termed a mock presidential debate, the format very much resembled that of a real presidential debate with issues ranging from education, economics, gun rights and more.
Athena Kavanagh, a junior in business economics and president of the MSU Speech and Debate Council, said the outcome of the debate followed closely with what the council had outlined and avoided the partisanship which has largely been absent from politics.
“We wanted to act very non-partisan like we said,” Kavanagh said, “and sort of orchestrated something we haven’t really seen on TV this election year.”
Julia Rachel Kuehnle, a sophomore in business administration and member of the MSU Speech and Debate Council, said the things which the mock debate did not want to show included theatrics.
Kuehnle said participating in the debate showed her how groups with different political views can come together for something monumental.
“It’s been very educational to me as a student at MSU to lead this group of people,” Kuehnle.“We literally had five different groups on campus work on this project, and it was just amazing to see it all put together.”
Kuehnle said she was nervous about how many people would attend the debate. She attributed many students who came out to watch the debate to the extra credit their professors offered them for attending. Nonetheless, the turnout was impressive.
Kavanagh said many professors wanted students to witness the mock debate because of its uniqueness.
Kuehnle said the audience was given the opportunity to participate by submitting questions. Kuehnle said during the planning for the debate, various ideas were tossed around on how best to incorporate the audience, and organizers were please with the  end result.
Kennedy Moehrs, Kathleen Pohl and William Bonduris, who debated for the College Democrats said they felt they all performed well. 
Moehrs, President of the College Democrats, debated in the wild card round, and did not know what topic the audience had chosen until minutes before it was asked.
“It was really quick thinking on your feet,” Moehrs said.
Kathleen Pohl, a senior majoring in secondary education (social studies), went first in the debate during the first round. She said going into the debate she was not sure if she had prepared adequately enough, but when she stepped on stage she felt confident.
William Bonduris, a sophomore in political science and debater in the economics round, said he would like for an event like the mock presidential debate to become an annual occurrence.
“I felt like it went really well,” Bonduris said. “I hope it was informative for people, and that we kept everybody entertained.”
Andrew Word, president of Young Americans for Liberty and debater in the wild card round, said he is glad the audience stayed calm throughout, and that the Young Americans for Liberty could participate in the event alongside the College Republicans and and College Democrats. 
Trey Goff, a senior in political science, and debater for the Young Americans for Liberty in the economics round, said the debate was fun and informative, and that the debate showed how civility can be practiced when discussing politics.
“Hopefully, this stood as a bit of a contrast from the rhetoric and discourse that’s going on in the public to show that we at Mississippi State have a higher level of discourse,” Goff said.
Colton Robison, president of the College Republicans and debater in the wild card round, said  the debate went better than he had hoped. Robison said those who came out could see where the parties stand and how they differ.
“It was a benefit to everybody to come out here and do this because everyone was able to tell the difference,” Robison said.
Nikki Reeder, a senior in political science and debater in the education round for the College Republicans, said the mock debate succeeded more than the presidential debates which were seen on television because they could actually debate the issues.
“Unlike the presidential debates we were actually able to talk about issues and not attack our opponents,” Reeder said.
Nolen Hood, a senior in mechanical engineering and debater for the College Republicans in the economy round, said the debate went well because during a debate, so many things could go wrong. 
“I think it was a good outlook for all the organization to present their ideas,” Hood said.
Cheryl Chambers, faculty advisor and head coach for MSU’s Speech and Debate Council, said she was happy with the number of people who showed up to watch the debate. The only disappoint Chambers had with the debate is having to wait four more years to do it again.
“I’m extremely impressed with our debaters,” Chambers said. “They were in a very, very stressful situation and they handled it with such poise and respect for one another.”