Viewers are convinced JD Vance has “doubled down” on his choice to wear eyeliner during his vice presidential debate with Tim Walz. The Republican candidate’s appearance seemed to distract many viewers from his policies just 10 minutes into the CBS event.

Despite the focus on his appearance, Vance and Walz maintained a civilised tone throughout the debate, with Vance attempting to steer clear of “personal controversies”. One user commented on Twitter: “Can’t stop noticing JD Vance’s eyeliner.”

Another chimed in with: “I need eyeliner tips from JD Vance.”

A third speculated: “I think JD Vance doubled down on the eyeliner in order to throw Walz off his game tonight.”

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The New York debate provided an opportunity for Vance, a first-term Republican senator from Ohio, and Walz, a two-term Democratic governor of Minnesota, to introduce themselves, advocate for their running mates, and criticise the opposing ticket, reports the Express US.

The debate could potentially have a significant impact. Polls indicate that Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are in a tight race, adding importance to any factors that could influence marginal voters, including the impressions made by the vice presidential candidates.

The Harris and Trump teams have yet to agree on another debate, suggesting that this could be the last one for the campaign. The role of a vice-presidential candidate is often to act as the attack dog for the presidential nominee, challenging the opposing candidate and their representative.

Both Vance and Walz have taken up this mantle.

Both Walz, the Democratic governor of Minnesota, and Vance, a Republican senator from Ohio, directed many of their attacks at the top of the ticket, which is customary in VP debates. They each highlighted the current crises as reasons for voters to choose either Vice President Kamala Harris or former President Donald Trump.

In response to a question about whether he would support a preemptive strike on Iran after it launched missiles at Israel, Walz portrayed Trump as too risky for the nation and the world during these unstable times.

Minnesota’s Democratic governor, Walz, emphasised the importance of steady leadership, stating: “What’s fundamental here is that steady leadership is going to matter,” and “And the world saw it on that debate stage a few weeks ago, a nearly 80-year-old Donald Trump talking about crowd sizes is not what we need in this moment.”

In response, Vance argued for Trump’s influence, asserting: “Donald Trump actually delivered stability.”