Throughout the debate, O'Malley accused Ehrlich of supporting the wealthy and hurting the working class. O'Malley's attack, a classic Democratic one, was designed to shore-up his support in Baltimore City and to increase his support in Baltimore somewhat working class suburbs. Ehrlich, in response, accused O'Malley of being divisive and engaging in a kind of class warfare.

At one point in the debate, Ehrlich, known to get "testy," told Baltimore Mayor O'Malley that, "I pay for you" and "Without us you're done." O'Malley responded by accusing Ehrlich of practicing "the politics of divisive fear." The Mayor also reminded the governor that the citizens of the city of Baltimore are also citizens of the state.

These first two moments may well help O'Malley solidify his hold on the Baltimore City vote and gain working-class votes in Baltimore's suburbs. The third moment, a gaffe, may hurt O'Malley. He claimed that Baltimore's murder rate was under 200 per year. After the debate, the Ehrlich campaign pointed out the inaccuracy and accused O'Malley of misleading Maryland voters. The O'Malley campaign responded that the Mayor misspoke: he meant 300, not 200. The O'Malley campaign also responded that Ehrlich was misleading voters when claiming he was anti-taxation when he had actually supported several tax or fee increases.

Usually, the media comments after a debate and thereby shapes the public's response. In this unusual case, the media may well focus the public on these three moments. How the public responds is difficult to predict. The best guess is that some will interpret O'Malley's gaffe as an indication that he's attempting to mislead voters. However, some--especially those in Baltimore--may deeply resent the arrogance in Ehrlich's "I pay for you" comment. Even those outside Baltimore may react negatively to Ehrlich's tone.