With early voting underway in Wisconsin, Republican U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil and Democratic challenger Mitchell Berman have met in the only scheduled debate of their race for the state's 1st Congressional District.
The district covers all of Racine and Kenosha counties and also reaches into parts of Rock County and Milwaukee County. Republicans have held the seat since 1995. Steil is the current incumbent, and former House Speaker Paul Ryan represented the district before him.
The race has tightened in outside ratings. Both the Cook Political Report and the University of Virginia's Crystal Ball previously rated the seat as likely Republican and have since moved it to leaning Republican, and the result will help decide which party controls Congress.
WCLO radio in Janesville hosted the debate live on air and online. The candidates clashed over the cost of living, election rules, immigration and Social Security, and argued sharply over Medicaid and the Republican legislation Democrats criticize for new restrictions and cuts.
Berman argued that Medicaid should be fully funded and Affordable Care Act subsidies restored, warning that coverage losses would hurt patients and hospitals. Steil countered that Medicaid funding for Wisconsin rose by $1 billion year over year and accused his opponent of fear-mongering, an exchange the two repeated several times during the debate.
