First Flash Polls’ Shock Verdict on Vance-Walz Debate Clash Revealed

Snap polls following Tuesday’s vice presidential debate show voters think Ohio Sen. JD Vance and his Democratic opponent, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, ended their verbal jousting in a virtual draw.

A flash poll by CBS News and YouGov, released shortly after the debate aired, saw 42 percent of likely voters giving a win to Vance and 41 percent to Walz, while 17 percent judged it a tie.

A CNN poll of registered voters who watched the debate, conducted by SSRS produced a similar result: 51 percent said they thought Vance performed better and 49 percent gave the nod to Walz.

Likely voters were also split 50/50 in a Politico/Focaldata snap poll. However, the Politico poll showed Walz with a sixteen point lead among independent voters: 58 percent said the Minnesota governor won the debate versus 42 percent who sided with Vance.

One poll broke with the pack: a Daily Mail/J.L Partners survey of likely voters found that 50 percent said Vance won compared to 43 percent who said Walz came out ahead.

The results are in stark contrast to both presidential debates this year, when Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump argued Biden out of the race in June, and a subsequently strong showing from Kamala Harris–despite Trump continuing to claim he won. According to CBS, 88 percent of voters believed the debate itself was “generally positive.”

CBS Moderators Cut Vance’s Mic During Fact-Checking Clash

Per CBS News and YouGov, Walz scored a higher rating for sounding “reasonable” during the debate in comparison to Vance’s 65 percent, though Vance walked out of the debate with a more favorable view than what people had of him before his appearance. Vance’s favorability rating improved from 40 percent to 49 percent while Walz’ favorability rose from 52 percent to 60 percent.

Walz spoke better than Vance on the issues of abortion (62 percent to 38 percent) and health care (59 percent to 41 percent) while Vance gained favorability on the topics of economy and immigration.

“Neither has yet convinced a majority of voters about an essential part of the job: that they’d be qualified to be president if needed.” CBS wrote.