Representative Mike Kelly and Democratic challenger Attorney Ron DiNicola faced off in a debate on Monday, October 8 at Mercyhurst University. The debate was live-streamed, and a four-person panel asked questions, with some questions coming from viewers on Facebook.

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A third candidate is running for the office as a libertarian, Ebert Beeman, but he was excluded from the debate because he did not meet the requirement. To participate, a candidate needed a campaign headquarters with paid or volunteer staff and at least $50,000 in local campaign contributions. Beeman has filed a formal complaint about being excluded.

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Although the event was advertised as, “free and open to the public,” several attendees expressed anger and annoyance with the process. Tickets needed to be obtained in advance and it was difficult for members of the public to figure out how to obtain them.

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To start off the debate, each candidate was given time for opening remarks. Kelly, who is running for his fifth two-year term in the U.S. House of Representatives, gave the first opening statement.

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“We are leading again (in America) because of strong Republican leadership,” Kelly began, boasting his party’s majority in the U.S. Congress.

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However, DiNicola chose to open with a stab at Kelly’s leadership, saying, “Welcome to Erie.” Kelly has been criticized in the past for not meeting with constituents in Erie and hearing their concerns.

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“Leadership on both sides of the aisle in Congress has failed, and they must go,” DiNicola said in his opening statement. “Members of Congress who went for their own interests, special interests, they must go. My opponent is one of them. And he must go.”

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For each question, the candidates received 30 seconds to answer. The candidates alternated who would answer first, and the questions covered a wide range of issues of both local and national importance. These included topics such as mass incarceration, Global Climate Change, and taxes.

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An issue that has been a hot topic is whether or not to start a community college in Erie. Kelly praised the idea of “public-private partnerships,” while DiNicola expressed full support for a community college. Kelly and DiNicola both talked about the need for a better educated workforce.

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Kelly said that we are “not preparing people for jobs that exist.” In response to Kelly’s comments about education, DiNicola emphasized that Kelly’s voting record in Congress did not support what he said about education.

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Throughout the debate, Kelly and DiNicola repeatedly criticized one another. DiNicola cited examples of Kelly’s record, and Kelly responded by calling DiNicola a liar, going as far as to compare DiNicola to Pinocchio.

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Near the end of the debate, one of the questions addressed political discourse and if a compromise is attainable. DiNicola was first to speak on this issue.

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“We need compromise, it’s essential,” DiNicola said. He then explained that a change in leadership in the House is important to changing the discourse, and that too many people in positions of power are “safe” from losing elections. In response, Kelly said that if Democrats are the majority party that they will try to impeach President Trump and Justice Kavanaugh.

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DiNicola and Kelly gave closing remarks to bring the debate to a close.

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“[If] you send me to Congress, I won’t disappear,” DiNicola said. “I will fight for you.” DiNicola also promised to regularly hold town halls and office hours, continuing to criticize Kelly’s lack of interaction with Erie residents.

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During Kelly’s closing remarks, he discussed his success with having “phone town halls,” and explained that his office has one of the best records of meeting with constituents of members of the House.

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This was the only scheduled debate between the candidates, and voters will be able to decide on November 6 which candidate they want representing them in Congress.