O'Malley and Ehrlich Will Debate; Ehrlich Accuses O'Malley of Ducking Earlier Debate Opportunity
Maryland Governor Robert Ehrlich and Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley will debate Saturday. The debate, likely the only one during the campaign, will be televised. With this date set, the Ehrlich campaign attemped to gain an advantage over O'Malley by suggesting that the mayor was reluctant to debate. The O'Malley campaign labeled the Ehrlich campaign's charge "a blatant attempt to mislead the public."
: Martin O'Malley, Robert Ehrlich, Debate over Debates
According to the Ehrlich campaign, the two candidates had agreed to a televised debate last night (October 11) in Salisbury. The debate presumably would have been broadcast only to an "Eastern Shore" audience. The O'Malley campaign denied that the mayor had ever committed to the event.
As a challenger known to project a certain amount of charm, O'Malley has much to gain from debating Ehrlich. Thus, the Ehrlich campaign's claim seems to ring false. However, given the "Eastern Shore"'s tendency to vote very heavily Republican, O'Malley had little to gain in the Salisbury television market. Thus, the O'Malley campaign may well not have responded to the opportunity enthusiastically.
Ehrlich, thought by media commentators to be the one dragging his feet about debating, probably seized upon O'Malley's lack of enthusiasm to combat this perception.
