"Debates Reveal Differences," by Sir Alexandreu Davinescu

Senatorial candidates met for debates in both Maritiimi-Maxhestic and Vuode recently, moderated by Beric'ht Talossan. Maritiimi-Maxhestic Senator Sir Mick Preston vied against MC Magniloqueu Épiqeu da Lhiun, while Vuode Senator Sir Trotxâ Betiñéir faced off against S:reu Éovart Grischun, in conflicts that revealed a great deal of political agreement as well as considerable personal animus. In both debates, the candidates found that they all agreed that they were there to help serve the citizens of their province foremost and their parties second, while identifying immigration as an issue most in need of address.

The Maritiimi-Maxhestic debate, however, found consistent criticism from Senator Preston against his challenger, whose judgment he called into question. Intriguingly, this criticism was echoed in the Vuode debate as well, where challenged S:reu Éovart Grischun reserved his harshest words not for the incumbent, but for MC Da Lhiun, calling Da Lhiun's behavior as Attorney-General into question in strong terms. It was an unusual display, particularly since the criticism came from both sides of a partisan line. It was also not the only problem experienced by MC Da Lhiun, who found himself repeatedly without the time to participate; at one point, the moderator (the author of this article) found himself obliged to simply move on without a response.

Still, all candidates put forward a positive and eloquent defense of their merits and their plans for their provinces. MC Da Lhiun called for Maritiimi-Maxhestians to "[r]each out to us, regardless of who prevails in this race, engage in provincial politics, engage in provincial non-political stuff!", while S:reu Grischun promised that a griffin would be donated to Vuode Zoo if he was elected. Both incumbents ran on their records as long-serving Senators.

All in all, the debates were widely agreed to be a success, following a model first established by Senator Preston himself in previous years. The outcome in both races is wholly unknown, with the results widely believed to depend on voter turnout in the provinces.