Sorry but I can't see it.

The section title says 'contest' implying a test of debating skills but if a current event is used everyone will vote in accordance with their political leanings regardless of how well the advocates have performed.

You might as well hold a poll and you'd get pretty much the same thing but without the time constraints.

howevr if the debates were held over politically neutral topics (Blueberry muffin vs Jam doughnut) it could work but this is a political forum so who'd want to do that?

Maybe I'm missing something,

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Marx (G.)