Here’s Where You Can Watch The Presidential Debate Tonight (So You Don’t Have To Handle It Alone)
For those of you who need a cocktail and warm bodies to watch (or survive) the first Presidential debate of 2016, you have plenty of options in the neighborhood.
Democratic Candidate Secretary Hillary Clinton will face off against Republican Candiate Donald Trump on Monday, September 26 at 9pm EDT at nearby Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York.
According to NPR, upwards to 100 million viewers are expected to tune in, which could make it the largest viewership for a campaign event in U.S. history.
Here’s a list of gatherings at bars and other venues where you can laugh, drink, cry, drink, kvetch, drink, freakout, drink, and drink. Or, as was the underlying emotion in the responses from most southern Brooklyn bars who said they’d be screening the debate, feel generally apathetic about the state of American politics.
Keep in mind the debate begins at 9pm, but you can arrive far earlier at all of these venues should you need time to put yourself in your preferred state.
The Longbow
Where: 7316 3rd Avenue
Phone: (718) 238-7468
Details: Local group the Bay Ridge Democrats will be meeting at the bar for the screening.
Joe’s Bar
Where: 257 Avenue U
Phone: (718) 372-9595
Details: “We’ve got six TVs so we’ll be playing it on at least once, there’ll probably be football on the others,” an employee informed us.
Steeplechase Beer Garden
Where: 1904 Surf Avenue
Phone: (718) 449-3200
Details: The employee who picked up said they’d have it on, although she did not seem enthusiastic.
Townhouse 275
Where: 275 94th Street
Phone: (347) 560-4001
Details: They said they’d probably play it, but seemed quite apathetic.
My Father’s Place
Where: 1861 Cropsey Avenue
Phone: (718) 372-9286
Details: The respondent said they’d play it, but seemed to lack any strong feelings about the fact.
And for those looking to avoid politics at all cost, where will they not be playing the debate? According to the 30+ sample size we cold-called today, most South Brooklyn bars will not be screening the debate. Here’s one definite safe haven from both Hillary and Trump (on the screen, anyway):
Windy City Ale House
Where: 7915 3rd Avenue
Phone: (718) 630-5700
Details: “Absolutely not,” we were told when we asked if they’d be playing the debate tonight. Well, there you have it.
Prefer to watch the debauchery in the privacy of your own home but don’t own a TV? Thanks to partnerships with various media companies, you can also livestream the debates via Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
Plan ahead for the other scheduled debates:
Tuesday, October 4. Vice Presidential Debate, 9pm–10:30pm. Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine (D) against Indiana Governor. Mike Pence (R). Longwood University, Farmville, Virginia.
Sunday, October 9. 2nd Presidential Debate (Town Hall Style). 9pm–10:30pm. Washington University, St. Louis.
Wednesday, October 19. 3rd Presidential Debate. 9pm–10:30pm. University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Did we miss one? Email us at editor@bensonhurstbean.com
Additional reporting by Donny Levit and Carly Miller.