This used to be the season of the World Series, fake cobweb decorations, and candidate debates. The first two are holding strong, at least at my house. But the 2022 midterm elections have come up short on political debates. FiveThirtyEight, the political analysis website, says 58% of races for the U.S. Senate this year have had no debates. In many contests that have, there’s been just one matchup where there used to be three. Would-be governors are holding back too; a report on the governing website has concluded, “Numerous candidates for governor and other offices have decided that participating in debates is not in their own best interest.”