The Long Island college student who asked President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney the first question in Tuesday night's debate says he is no longer an undecided voter.
Jeremy Epstein, a 20-year-old student at Adelphi University, told NBC 4 New York Wednesday that he felt both Obama and Romney were sincere and gave good answers when he asked about concerns that he would not be able to get a job when he finishes school.
"I thought they both spoke very eloquently," he said. "They both did a great job answering the question."
His interaction with the candidates quickly sparked a wave of discussion about him on social media, with the hashtag #jeremy trending before the debate was over. The student, from North Woodmere, had not been active on Twitter but reactivated his account Tuesday night after he became a sensation.
Epstein told MSNBC's "The Daily Rundown" that he also spoke to both candidates after the debate. He said Romney thanked him for the question.
"I asked him if he's gonna give me that job in two years and he said 'Maybe,'" Epstein said. "Then I was speaking with President Obama asking how his Chicago Bulls are gonna do, because they lost their MVP Derek Rose, and he said that I could not beat him in one-on-one, but I disagree with that."
The audience of "uncommitted" voters from Nassau County for the debate at Hofstra University was chosen by The Gallup Organization at random. Asked Wednesday whether he was still undecided, Epstein said he was not.
"No, I think I made a decision," he said.
Epstein, who is studying exercise science, declined to reveal which candidate will be getting his vote.
But he told NBC 4 New York that before the debate, he was "swaying a little bit, I guess, towards the incumbent."
He said on MSNBC that the experience of being the first questioner made him a bit nervous. In the hours before the debate, he said he had "plenty of time to think, 'OK don't mess up, try to speak eloquently. Don't seem nervous. Don't embarrass the family.'"
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