BOSTON – For the first time, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump met in person in a Presidential debateBut where did Massachusetts voters end up after the 90-minute debate ended?

Advice from the debate leader

“That solidified it for me,” said Cate Decoteau, a third-year student at Boston College who said she had finally decided who she was going to vote for, a statement from Harris that tipped the scales. “She was a gun owner. A big problem is how one-sided people are. And I thought it was great that she put in there, ‘I’m a Democrat, but I own a gun.’ For people like me, who are more in between, that was a sign for me.

But the debate itself was not so impressive for some. John Katsulas, the chair of the debate department at Boston College, has been teaching debate there for 40 years.

“I would give Trump a D- and Harris an A-,” said Katsulas, who questioned whether the meeting even deserved to be called a debate. “It’s not a good example of a debate because neither of them really answered many of the questions.”

Katsulas gave the candidates his own advice in case there is another debate before Election Day.

“Have a structured presentation. Clear, compelling arguments backed up by facts and evidence,” Katsulas said. “She at least cited evidence, he’s basically citing websites. ‘Oh, there’s a website that says they eat dogs and cats.'”

Different conclusions from both parties

Despite the criticism, the Massachusetts Republican Party was pleased with Trump’s performance and blamed the moderators for any missteps.

“His statements have been fact-checked multiple times, while I have not seen any fact-checking of Vice President Harris,” said Logan Trupiano, spokesman for the Massachusetts GOP.

The Massachusetts State Democratic Party said in a statement that Harris had won the election and was confident she would win in November.

“…it is abundantly clear that Vice President Harris is the right choice for America. She has laid out an expertly crafted plan for how she and Tim Walz will fight for a new way forward,” Steve Kerrigan, chairman of the Massachusetts State Democratic Party, said in a statement.