As the election is nearing, candidates are vying for the public opinion of the people. On Mon., Sep. 26, 2016, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump held a 90-minute debate in Hempstead, New York.

Both candidates were on display, bantering back and forth over the three topics the moderator, Lester Holt, presented to them: achieving prosperity, America’s direction, and America’s security.

“I do not prefer any of the candidates because I feel like they focus too much on being entertaining. Also, I cannot vote so it does not really matter,” said Chloe Bradley, 12.

When discussing achieving prosperity through creating jobs, the candidates disagreed greatly. Clinton believed that in order to boost the economy, raising the minimum wage and equal pay for working women would need to be addressed.

“I thought that sometimes both candidates got a little out of hand. This election is definitely interesting,” said Grace Deng, 9.

Trump, on the other hand, stated that it was important to stop jobs from being stolen, stop companies from leaving the U.S., reduce taxes, build and expand companies, and renegotiate trade deals.

“I am excited for the next two debates, and I hope they cover all the topics that need to be addressed instead of going off on a tangent like they did in this one,” said Deng.

After the debate was over, Twitter exploded with several hashtags and opinions about the event. There are still two more presidential debates coming up, with the next one on Oct. 9.