There is no nice way to say it ‒ Thursday’s presidential debate was a mess. We’re almost a week out, but I haven’t been able to stop thinking about the dumpster fire it tuned into and what it means to young voters.

I don’t expect a lot from debates as it is. Every debate I’ve watched previously has been disappointing. Typically, both sides declare victory. That isn’t what happened last Thursday.

Thursday night’s debate cast doubt on the mental capacity of President Joe Biden. It was so bad that members of his own party are now calling for him to drop out of the race. It also gave former President Donald Trump a platform to spew falsehoods without the benefit of a real-time fact-checking.

As a Gen Z voter, the debate left me feeling helpless. Biden’s answers left me unsatisfied and worried about his mental capacity. Trump’s inaccurate remarks on abortion and hateful rhetoric about immigrants left me worried about the state of the country if he does return to the presidency. Neither of these candidates are good.

It was a particularly bad night for Generation Z, born from 1997 to 2012. It's an age demographic already unenthusiastic about Biden despite favoring the Democratic Party in polling data.

Instead of the strong statements I hoped Biden would make........

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