On a small stage in a dimly lit room, Josh Cohen and Mike Pantelides stared at their laptop screens and crafted short statements about Annapolis politics for an audience they could not see.
Brevity was a necessity — the candidates for Annapolis mayor were participating in a debate using the social media site Twitter, where messages are limited to 140 characters.
The Twitter debate was a first in Annapolis, where Cohen, Pantelides and other candidates in this fall's city elections have added social media to their more typical campaign strategies of knocking on doors, mailing brochures and speaking at voter forums.
"As a candidate, it's all about reaching voters and getting the message out in the way people receive it," said Cohen, a Democrat who is running for a second term as mayor.
Pantelides, a Republican, said he picked up several new followers during Tuesday's Twitter debate, held at the Metropolitan restaurant in Annapolis. He said he tries to make sure his Twitter account updated to keep voters engaged.
These days, more voters are getting news and information online, though Annapolis tends to be more of a Facebook town than a Twitter town.
As of midweek, Cohen had 883 "likes" for his official mayoral Facebook page, while Pantelides had 798 "likes" for his campaign page.
On Twitter, Cohen has a main account — @cohenjosh — where he posts frequently and has 2,415 followers, and a less-used @cohenformayor account with 285 followers.
Pantelides has 155 Twitter followers on his @VotePantelides account, more than double the 76 followers on his personal account.
During the Twitter debate, John Frenaye of the blog Eye on Annapolis and Alex Cortright of WRNR radio took turns posing questions to the candidates, most of them submitted by Twitter users.
Pantelides and Cohen were allowed two "tweets" to answer each question. All questions and answers were marked with a special hashtag — #ANP13 — so Twitter users could follow along more easily.
Some queries were typical of traditional forums: how environmental and economic interests should be balanced for large developments; and how the downtown historic district could be made more friendly to residents, not just tourists.
Early on, Cohen and Pantelides were faced with the challenge of answering a complicated question with snappy answers. The question: Do you see crime and multigenerational poverty in Annapolis as failures of educational advancement? What have you done with the school system to change that?
"One-hundred and forty characters? No problem!" Cohen chirped sarcastically.
Cohen said there are many contributing factors to poverty, including education. He said he supports magnet schools, smaller classes and school resource officers.
Pantelides noted he is a member of the 21st Century Foundation, a nonprofit that supports local schools, and is committed to increasing educational opportunities and jobs.
Other questions were decidedly quirkier.
For example, the candidates were asked what book they are reading — "How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie for Pantelides; "Not in My Neighborhood" by Antero Pietila for Cohen — and what song or album influenced them — "Energy" by Operation Ivy for Pantelides; "Walking on Sunshine" by Katrina and the Waves for Cohen.
Before typing his answer about the song, Pantelides mused about the possibilities.
"What I listen to at the gym? The 'Rocky' theme song. But the album didn't change my life," he said.
Cohen, meanwhile, was gently ribbed by the small in-person crowd for his selection of "Walking on Sunshine."
Pantelides also was asked what item he'd like to have named for him at Chick & Ruth's Delly should be win. Dozens of sandwiches at the Main Street restaurant are named for politicians. His answer: a calzone with chicken, pepperoni, mozzarella cheese and ranch dressing. Cohen already has a menu item: a chicken wrap with Swiss cheese, grilled onions and lettuce.
Both seemed to enjoy the Twitter debate, but they weren't sure how much it may have helped their chances Nov. 5.
"I thought it was more of a novelty than anything else," said Cohen, who attended the event alone, while Pantelides had two campaign workers by his side.
Pantelides said he thought it was a good way to show a different side to voters, especially with the quirky questions.
"It makes it more personal," he said.
twitter.com/pwoodreporter