Skip Lambert, a retired restaurant manager who lives in Kapahulu, wants to see the contrasts between Daniel Akaka and Ed Case tonight when they finally stand side-by-side.

Lambert, who is volunteering for Case, believes the debate will show the congressman as a centrist with a command of public policy. He said it might also lead others to the same conclusion he has made about Akaka. "It's really time for a transition," he said.

Ho'ala Greevy of Kailua, who owns an e-mail filtering company and is volunteering for Akaka, said he hopes the debate shows voters the side of the senator he saw on a recent campaign swing to Maui. "During that day I spent with him, I was able to gain a firsthand appreciation of the traits people find so appealing in him — integrity, humility, the Hawaiian spirit and his ability to work with others to get the job done," he said in an e-mail.

Voters tonight will get their only chance to watch Akaka and Case in a live debate before the Sept. 23 Democratic primary for Senate. Like Lambert and Greevy, viewers of the one-hour telecast on PBS Hawai'i will be looking for different things from the candidates, from how well they can think on their feet to how effectively they can communicate their messages.

Political analysts caution voters and the news media about making too much of a single debate — which is just one element in a nine-month campaign — but they also agree that debates can be revealing.

RARE EVENT

Neal Milner, a political science professor at the University of Hawai'i-Manoa, said this debate is perhaps more anticipated than previous debates in the Islands because of the rarity of two popular incumbents in Congress challenging each other for supremacy.

U.S. Rep. Spark Matsunaga and U.S. Rep. Patsy Mink went up against each other in the Democratic primary for Senate in 1976, but it was for an open seat to replace retiring Republican Hiram Fong, not to take out an incumbent.

"It's virtually unprecedented," Milner said.

Milner suggests that voters try to decide in advance what is important to them rather than being swayed by the emotion of the event or the inevitable spin from the campaigns afterward. "Think about what each candidate has said his strengths are and what he has said about the weaknesses of his opponent," he said.

The format — each candidate will have five minutes for opening remarks, two minutes to respond to each question, one minute for rebuttals and three minutes for closing statements — will force Akaka and Case to condense their answers, which may not give voters a full appreciation of complex public-policy issues such as the war in Iraq or oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Akaka did not debate Republican congresswoman Pat Saiki in their 1990 Senate race, the last time Akaka was in a competitive campaign, and some of his advisers are nervous about how the senator will perform. Akaka rejected Case's requests for multiple debates, which has led to more attention on tonight's lone encounter.

"I want them to get an understanding of our differences and the way we relate to issues," Akaka said of voters.

Over the weekend, Akaka's advisers worked with the senator on how to frame his opening and closing remarks and how to stay within the time limits for answers and rebuttals. In the past few days, the campaign has been staging mock debates, with advisers rotating as stand-ins for Case.

"We're concerned, obviously," said Andy Winer, Akaka's campaign manager. "This is Case's format. He's used to getting up in front of people and being glib and talking. He's got the training of a lawyer, which, speaking as a lawyer, I can tell you is much more tuned in to the kind of format that you're talking about."

Akaka's advisers believe the senator is not a naturally strong debater and, as a former teacher and principal, communicates more like a storyteller through anecdotes. But they believe he can be effective if he shows his likability and his grasp of the issues.

"I don't see him quote-unquote beating Case in a debate," Winer said. "I don't think that's going to happen. But I think that voters want to see them side-by-side and want to see the differences in styles."

LOTS OF ADVICE

Case has prepared by interacting with voters at several "talk story" sessions over the past week, which often have the feel of a debate because the questions he gets from the audience are spontaneous. He is also having his advisers fire questions at him and is practicing how to respond within the time limits.

The congressman said he is getting a lot of unsolicited advice from people on how best to use the moment. "I do read my e-mail, and people know that, so I've got a lot of advice coming in," he said. "So it's a matter of distilling the advice down. I'm clearly doing the basic preparation and walking through the themes I want to be sure that I hit."

Case said that since Akaka has agreed to only one debate he has to take the opportunity tonight to reach voters.

"I think it's important for me to clarify the choice," he said. "I think the opportunity to contrast myself with Sen. Akaka, across the board, and to offer the elements of that choice that people have to make, is important for me."

Case said being able to debate effectively is essential in the Senate. "What it comes down to is who can do a better job as a United States senator," he said. "You can deflate expectations all you want; I think people are going to make that judgment from the debate."

Reach Derrick DePledge at ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com.