The first-ever presidential debate in Panem started with a bang today when President Paylor faced off against not one, but two competitors: Governor Celine Oswald of District 13, and war hero and Mockingjay Katniss Everdeen. All three qualified with the Panem Electoral Commission to participate in the first debate as they all passed the 10% mark in a recent poll by the PEC.
One of the biggest parts of the debate was the thrashing that President Paylor received from two sides. It seemed that her opponents had unintentionally cornered her into a position that was impossible to free herself.
Paylor’s policies were directly highlighted in the debate, as were Governor Oswald’s. Everdeen appeared to be in the easiest position, having no record to run on that could send her campaign spiraling down. She took this opportunity to highlight President Paylor’s veto on presidential term-limits, calling the veto “authoritarian, quite like something that Snow would do,” and attacked Oswald for protesting a rebellion against Snow during the Panem Rebellion.
Oswald defended herself, saying:
What I thought about the rebellion at that point in time was a complete delusion and in no way represents what I believe about it now. While I must run on that record, I cannot say that it is representative of what type of President I will be like. All I can say is that I was worried that the consequences of a rebellion against the Capitol failing would be catastrophic for District 13. It wasn’t a protest for my personal interests. It was a protest in the best interest of District 13, my home.
Polling regarding the debate are as follows:
Which candidate for President of Panem do you think won tonight’s debate?
- War hero Katniss Everdeen – 45%
- Governor of District 13 Celine Oswald – 45%
- President of Panem Cecelia Paylor – 10%
After watching the debate, which candidate would you vote for?
- War hero Katniss Everdeen – 49%
- Governor of District 13 Celine Oswald – 20%
- President of Panem Cecelia Paylor – 20%
- Unsure – 11%
The Panem Free Press 