Americans living in Canada not swayed after U.S. presidential debate

Thousands of Canadians tuned in to the first U.S. presidential debates last night but two people in Saskatoon were paying a little more attention than the average viewer.

Claudia Manning and Joanna Daigle are both American expatriates living in Canada. Manning is a registered Democrat and Daigle is a registered Independent.

Both women talked to CBC Radio's Saskatoon Morning to give their thoughts about what they saw last night, and what they hope to see during the election.

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Trump trouble

Even though Daigle has voted Republican in the past, she can't see herself voting for Donald Trump this year. Trump's performance at last night's debate did not changed her mind.

"He had a real difficulty staying on topic," she said. "It was challenging for him to articulate well what he was trying to say, and he didn't appear poised or presidential. It's about staying calm and collected despite having things thrown at you."

Meanwhile, Democrat voter Manning said nothing she saw would convince her to change her vote.

"He was almost OK in the first 15 minutes," she said. "Then he epically started to become Trump again, and failed. Everything he said was just roundabout and no facts and no figures. And then he started to get angry. And for me, that was a true showing of who he was."

Despite Trump's controversial nature, the candidate continues to perform well in national polls. Daigle said the reasons why people are supporting Trump are complicated.

"Many Trump supporters are afraid," she said. "Afraid of ISIS, afraid of change. There's a nostalgia for the way things used to be...I certainly know a lot of people my parents' age and my grandparents' age who are supporting him."

Clinton conundrum

Both expatriates believe Clinton appeared more presidential than Trump during the debate. However, that doesn't mean either woman is a firm Clinton supporter.

"I certainly will not vote for Trump," said Daigle. "I don't particularly like the third-party candidates, because I checked their platforms and didn't like them...There's definitely potential that I will just stay at home."

Manning isn't a huge supporter of Clinton either. However, she may end up voting for her to counter a Trump presidency.

"She's not really the type of Democrat that I was raised with — the party that was a much more inclusive, more liberal, social programming kind of party," she said. "But I don't want Trump to become president. So, I'm not excited. But my fear is bigger."

Both women agree that Canada would likely be better off under a Clinton presidency.

"It's challenging if you have someone that you can't rely on," said Daigle. "As Trump did last night, he just kept on lying. And they were bold and blatant falsehoods."

The U.S. federal election will take place Nov. 8.