The first presidential debate kicked off Tuesday night in Cleveland, OH, with Republican nominee Donald Trump facing off against Democratic nominee Joe Biden.

The debate was a brawl and, as is the general consensus, an absolute trainwreck, with both candidates throwing not-so-subtle insults at each other. I think people from all political parties can agree that this debate was shocking, and surely one of the worst in recent history. The idea of respecting one’s opinion was thrown completely out that night, in an attempt for each candidate to discredit his opponent.

President Donald Trump could have easily won this debate. It’s no secret that Biden isn’t the greatest speaker of all time, but then, neither is Trump. I think Trump had a huge advantage going into Tuesday night’s debate, but he may have just lost it.

This is where Trump went wrong in the debates: he never tried to reach out to the people in the middle — those that are independent voters, or are still undecided. Appealing to non-partisan voters would have earned him a lot more votes.

Instead, Trump talked about what his baseline supporters already know but there was no need for that. Reaching to people in the middle is crucial for any election because it gives the candidate that much more of an advantage.

Trump made no effort to reach undecided Americans, and that could cost him the election this year.