Both candidates have become more aggressive as the race remains tight, heading into the campaign's final stretch.
These file photos from the Associated Press show Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown and his Democratic challenger, Harvard Law Professor Elizabeth Warren.More politics news
Poll: Obama leads Romney by 2 to 1 margin in Mass.
: Although President Barack Obama is expected to defeat Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney in Massachusetts this November, the margin by which the incumbent is edging the one-term Bay State governor is growing, according to a new poll released Tuesday.
Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown and Democratic Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren will meet face to face Thursday night for the first debate of this election cycle, beginning a new phase of the campaign.
As voters tune in to the race’s final post-Labor Day sprint to Nov. 6, the race continues to be close, and the candidates are becoming more aggressive. Polls show Warren, a Harvard Law School professor, opening up a slight lead against Brown, though Brown continues to lead with the critical voting bloc of independent voters. The debate will give Warren an opportunity to try to build on that momentum, as Brown tries to hold on to the independent voters that gave him his upset victory in 2010.
Anthony Cignoli, a political strategist from Springfield who works for candidates from both parties, said the pressure will be on both candidates to get their messages out – and to score points against the other without damaging themselves.
“People are paying attention to this race, and this is the first time the electorate is going to be able to see these two engage the other directly, not from the safety of doing so from media releases or over the internet,” Cignoli said. “This is raw, this is one on one.”
The debate will be sponsored by WBZ-TV, a CBS affiliate in Boston, and held at the station’s Boston studios. WBZ-TV political analyst Jon Keller will moderate. It will air live from 7-8 p.m. on WBZ-TV and will stream live on www.cbsboston.com.
Keller will ask the questions and will give the candidates 90 seconds to respond, followed by longer periods of open debate.
The economy has been the central issue throughout the campaign, and will likely remain so. But other issues that have come up recently could also be raised – women’s issues, including abortion, and foreign policy.
Brown is expected to stick with the theme he has pushed throughout the campaign – that he is bipartisan and can work across party lines. That message is necessary in liberal-leaning Massachusetts, where Brown must attract independent and Democratic voters to win, and polling shows that it has resonated. In a poll conducted by The Western New England University Polling Institute for The Republican and MassLive.com, voters said they viewed Brown as a moderate who could work with senators of both sides.
“Sen. Brown will stress his ability to work with both parties, that he’s open to ideas from any quarter, and we know that voters perceive that as well,” said Tim Vercellotti, professor of political science at Western New England University and director of the polling institute.
Peter Ubertaccio, associate professor of political science and director of the Martin Institute at Stonehill College, said Brown will try not to align himself with the national Republican Party and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Brown this week distanced himself from Romney’s comments that 47 percent of Americans, those who support Democratic president Barack Obama, are “victims” who feel entitled to government assistance.
“He needs voters to enter the voting booth thinking he’s an independent-minded senator who’s not going to vote the party line,” Ubertaccio said.
Warren, however, is likely to continue to tie Brown to the national Republican Party.
After facing criticism for what some Democrats called ineffective advertising, Warren has recently become more aggressive in her critique of Brown – and will likely continue this in the debate. Warren has criticized Brown for his opposition to letting the Bush tax cuts expire on those earning over $250,000, and for co-sponsoring the Blunt Amendment, which would allow employers not to provide insurance coverage for services they find morally objectionable.
Warren previewed her argument in an ad this week, which stated that Brown “is not a bad guy” and has had some good votes. But, Warren said she would fight for the middle class “all of the time,” while Brown voted against Obama’s jobs bills, supported subsidies for oil companies and opposed the “Buffett Rule,” which would raise taxes on the wealthy.
Vercellotti said it is typical for a challenger to make the race about the incumbent’s voting record. “You want to see a candidate…explain why their ideas are better, and when it’s a race where one candidate has a voting record, I’d be surprised if there wasn’t a discussion of the voting record,” he said.
Warren will continue to press her campaign theme – that she is working for the middle class and small business. “She likes to talk about how she feels those who play by the rules can’t get ahead because the system is rigged against them,” said Warren spokeswoman Alethea Harney. “She wants to create a level playing field.”
Ubertaccio said Brown is likely to respond by arguing that Warren is “too radical, too partisan, not a problem solver.” The Massachusetts Republican Party has been tying Warren to the Occupy Wall Street protest movement, while Brown has cast her as a partisan rock-thrower.
Brown spokesman Alleigh Marre said Warren’s ideas are “out of the mainstream.” “This debate offers voters a choice between Scott Brown, a bipartisan bridge-builder, and Warren, the founder of the radical Occupy protests who even leading Democrats have said is ‘catastrophically antibusiness,’” Marre said.
Four polls this week, including one by MassLive.com and The Republican, have found Warren narrowly leading Brown.
Cignoli said Brown must make a stronger case why independent and Democratic voters should support him, and the pressure will be on him to “stop the bleeding.” At the same time, Warren must continue to move the poll numbers in her favor, or the spin from the debate will be that she cannot connect with voters except through paid media.
Ubertaccio said debates are not typically game changers. But they can sway undecided voters, and solidify voters’ preferences. “Voters will look to be reassured that their initial assessment of the candidate is accurate,” Ubertaccio said.
Additional debates will be held Oct. 1, hosted by the University of Massachusetts-Lowell; Oct. 10, hosted by a Western Massachusetts media consortium in Springfield; and Oct. 30, hosted by a Boston media consortium.