Republican Congressman Andy Harris spent Tuesday night’s debate not only working to defend his 15-year tenure representing the Eastern Shore, but also warding off outcries from a disgruntled audience of his constituents.

The contentious candidate forum, hosted by the League of Women Voters at the Chesapeake Grove Intergenerational Center in Cambridge, was likely the only opportunity for Harris and Democratic challenger Dan Schwartz to speak on their campaign differences in the same room prior to the November 3 election.

The two fielded questions on a variety of topics for an hour and a half, ranging from the war in Iran to restoring the Chesapeake Bay.

The debate climaxed a third of the way through when Harris was asked why the United States made a deal with Russia for diesel amid ongoing sanctions against the country.

Harris opened his answer by blaming “Democrats’ environmental regulations” for high diesel prices, which received a burst of laughter from the audience.

“You should let me finish the sentence, ma'am. You are rude. You're rude,” Harris said to one person directly in the crowd.

Harris pointed to a lack of refineries in the U.S. as the reason behind skyrocketing diesel prices and is calling for export limits, as well as eliminating the federal and state tax on diesel.

Members of the crowd and Schwartz argued high gas prices are tied to the Iranian war started by President Donald Trump in February, which promptly led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Almost a quarter of the world’s oil flows through the strait.

Harris – a staunch Trump ally and chair of the far-right House Freedom Caucus – defended the president’s war, arguing Iran is one of the U.S.’s most imminent threats.

However, he admitted to wishing things had gone differently.

“Do I wish it had gone faster? Yes, I wish it had gone faster. I wish it had gone smoother. Yes, I wish it had gone smoother. But let's not take our eye off the ball. They can never have a nuclear weapon,” Harris said.

Schwartz agreed with Harris that Iranian leadership is “evil” but argued the war only replaced the Iranian regime with “more fanatic hardliners” and that U.S. military members are fighting an unnecessary battle.

“If we were going to go in there and fight this war, we needed a global coalition of the willing,” Schwartz said. “Instead, we went in at the behest of Israel, and we went in at the behest of our President Donald Trump. We did this for him, not for us, and we have caused an energy crisis here that is crippling our families and our farmers.”

Harris later clarified to reporters he feels the Russian diesel deal is a mistake and that diesel refined in the U.S. should be sold within the country “with only a reasonable profit.”

Harris also announced his diversion from the Trump administration over the Pentagon’s announcement to livestream the execution of the Fort Hood shooter.

Nidal Hasan, a former Army psychiatrist, has been on military death row since his 2013 conviction of killing 13 people and wounding 32 at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009.

“Death penalty is necessary in very limited circumstances. It should never be live streamed,” Harris said.

Harris agreed to Schwartz’s request to reach out to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and ask him to cancel the livestream.

The two candidates remained diametrically opposed on the majority of the remaining policy questions.

Schwartz is in favor of offshore wind, Harris is not; Harris largely defended federal workforce reductions, Schwartz says the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) went too far; Schwartz is in favor of a two-state solution in Palestine, Harris is not – and said “It's Israel, by the way. There is no country Palestine.”

The two agreed on the importance of the Eastern Shore’s agricultural industry and the Chesapeake Bay, but often sparred over the best way to support farmers and watermen.

The candidates did agree on one major policy point: opposing ballot Question 3, which could lead to a Democratic-leaning redraw of the Eastern Shore’s congressional district.

Maryland voters are not voting on a new map, only on a proposed constitutional amendment that would virtually legalize political gerrymandering within the state.

While a new congressional map is not currently on the table, lawmakers considered a map earlier this year that would have looped in parts of Anne Arundel and Howard Counties to make District 1 more Democratic.

When asked if he supports a plan to replace the existing Chesapeake Bay Bridge with two new four-lane spans, Harris said no and argued the full replacement is something “Western Shore people” want.

“That's why Question 3 is so important because [Western Shore people] are going to make the decision. Because you're going to draw this right here, where we're standing, into Columbia, Maryland, and people in Columbia want two four-lane bridges coming here. Eastern Shore people don't want two four-lane bridges coming here,” Harris said.

Under Maryland’s current map, Columbia resides in Congressional District 3.

Schwartz said he is in favor of the replacement, while Harris said only the two-lane bridge should be replaced with a four-lane bridge.

Harris told constituents Question 3 is the “most important” voting decision Eastern Shore residents will make on Nov. 3.

Schwartz is also against Question 3, but for a different reason than Harris, arguing redrawing the district would “poison the well for the Democratic Party” for years to come.

“We don't win by picking and choosing our voters as a Democratic Party in a district where we only have one Republican district. We do it by getting out there and fighting for our votes and by being the better candidate,” Schwartz said.

Harris agreed to answer questions from the press after the debate, but he singled out one reporter in the room and said he would not answer her questions, nor could she record the interview.

Harris asked his staff to call the police into the room to remove the reporter, but ultimately left abruptly before answering further questions.