ROANOKE (WSLS 10) - Thursday's deadly shooting is expected to play a big role in the presidential race, as well as the selection of vice presidential candidates.
WSLS 10's political analyst Ed Lynch said it already has sparked political discussion.
He said Republicans will likely respond to the tragedy from a law-and-order perspective, while Democrats will try to focus on gun control.
He continued, saying that it's important that voters not base their vote on candidate reaction to high-profile incidents like this.
"Incidents can highlight issues, but it's the issue itself whether it's race relations, law an order or foreign policy. Whatever the case may, there is an old saying that tough cases make bad law. We could also say that big incidents, tragic incidents make for bad politics," said Lynch.
Watch the video to see more of what Lynch had to say.