Earlier this summer, Donald Trump pummeled Joe Biden in the first debate. This month, Kamala Harris did unto Trump what he “done unto Biden.” The question is whether debates really matter. I now investigate the track record of the presidential debates, and find that it’s far better to win the final argument as opposed to the opening round.

You’ll find no shortage of articles online that claim “debates don’t matter,” from pundits and sometimes from political scientists. They pretty much rely on analysis from fellow pundits as to who won. And these involve such factors as “the best zinger,” or how the candidates looked, nonverbal cues, and whether they “answered the question” or not, which can be in the form of a “gotcha” question when the smartest response is often not to answer it, but instead explain your position to the people. Voters may well be caring more about the issues affecting them.

John A. Tures is a professor of political science at LaGrange College in Georgia. He can be reached at jtures@lagrange.edu. His Twitter account is @JohnTures2.