Lessenitt Campos

The first Republican primary debate was a heated exchange between politicians, with some falling to the heat from the night. The prime-time event proved to be a success story for some candidates and bad press for others.

For Donald Trump, who dominated social media during the event, was sharply criticized in the days following the debate. Trump was controversial since the beginning, refusing to pledge the oath and agree to not run as a third-party candidate should he/she lose the Republican nomination.

Trump continued to dominate social media, when Megyn Kelly, a Fox news anchor, asked him about his sexist comments towards women, calling them “fat pigs,” “dogs,” “slobs,” and “disgusting animals.”

Despite the negative attention, Trump dominated the discussion, speaking for a total of 10 minutes and 30 seconds. The moderators and even other candidates centered their responses on a lot of his comments.

“If it weren’t for me you wouldn’t even be talking about illegal immigration,” Trump said during the debate “This was not a subject on anybody’s mind.”

After the GOP debate, candidates from the Democratic Party used the debate as part of the campaign. Throughout the debate, Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders tweeted along using #DebateWithBernie.

Ironically, it wasn’t a Republican candidate who garnered the most retweets about the debate–it was Sanders, who got over 20,000 retweets on the following tweet:

It's over. Not one word about economic inequality, climate change, Citizens United or student debt. That's why the Rs are so out of touch.

— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) August 7, 2015

But in order for the Democrats to stand out, their vulnerability and poor showing in recent elections must improve in the upcoming debates.

A lack in likeability and relation to the people is a downside not only for the Democratic Party, but also for some of the Republican Candidates. Jeb Bush had an uninspiring, discouraging night, lacking the freshness of other prospective nominees like Ohio Governor John Kasich or Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker.

With some of the top candidates starting off on a low note, it gives room to new and reliable Republican faces.

A powerful speaker with high prospects, Florida Senator Marco Rubio was clear and concise when addressing the topics of Obamacare and abortion. His passions and beliefs showed through after being viewed as an unrealistic contender early on in the presidential campaign.

One of his driving points was on the future of the United States and how, “this election cannot be a resume competition because [Hillary] Clinton will win.” Standing for American exceptionalism, Rubio showed how he wants the nation to surpass their current system to achieve a brighter future.

Rubio saw it as an opportunity to address the Democratic candidate with her minimal understanding of the public’s needs.

“How is Hillary going to lecture me about living paycheck to paycheck? I was raised paycheck to paycheck,” Rubio said as he involved his own authentic life story, being the son of Cuban immigrants, to downplay on Clinton’s vulnerability to the people.

The next Republican primary debate, sponsored by CNN and Christian broadcasters, will be held Sept. 16 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California. Like the first debate, the top 10 candidates will debate during one block, with the rest of the candidates who have above one percent in public polling debating in another block.

The first Democratic primary debate, sponsored by CNN and the Nevada Democratic Party, will be held Oct. 13 in Nevada.