{From L) Presidential debate stand-ins A.J. Mercincavage, Andrew Lippi and Eric Gooden (Copyright Lannis Waters of The Palm Beach Post)

The debates that took place in the current United States presidential election featured a lot of talk about stand-ins.  Most of the publicity about stand-ins went to those who helped the former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and the incumbent President Barack Obama hone their debating skills.  Each candidate employed a stand-in for his opponent to prepare for the debates.

But since the debates were broadcast on television, it should come as little surprise that there was another kind of stand-in utilized — the kind we discuss on Stand-In Central.  A.J. Mercincavage, a student at Lynn University, stood in for Mitt Romney for the pre-production of the final presidential debate, which was televised from his school.  He wrote about his experience as a stand-in in USA Today College:

There is a lot more going on behind that stage than the audience may think. There is an army of technicians, cameramen and sound guys working their tails off to make sure everything that they put together in just 36 hours goes according to plan.

So it was funny for me, who spent what seemed like an inordinate amount of time making sure my chair position was just right for the cameras, to see both candidates walk to the debate table and promptly pull out their chairs.

Along with Mercincavage, Lynn students Eric Gooden and Andrew Lippi stood in for Barack Obama and debate moderator Bob Schieffer respectively.  According to a story in the Palm Beach Post on this debate “second team,” it would seem their heights were helpful in their fulfilling their stand-in gig’s demands.  But their backgrounds as students didn’t hurt:

They didn’t just stand there. They’d worked up questions and answers on foreign policy — the topic of Monday night’s faceoff – and practiced them with Lynn professors [so] the cameras could focus on body movements.

For Mercincavage’s story on the USA Today College website, click here.  For Eliot Kleinberg’s story on the Palm Beach Post website on the three debate stand-ins, click here.

Have some inside information on presidential stand-ins?  Were you a debate stand-in in the current election or a former one?  Post your story below!