SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The four candidates for Syracuse mayor faced one another for the final time in a televised debate Sunday night, just two days before the election.

News Channel 9 hosted the final debate between independent Ben Walsh, Democrat Juanita Perez Williams, Republican Laura Lavine and Green Howie Hawkins. Anchor Dan Cummings moderated.

The debate was taped just hours after the release of a Syracuse.com poll showing the race is a dead heat between Walsh and Perez Williams. Walsh gained significant ground on Perez Williams throughout October and led her by two points in the poll. Lavine and Hawkins trailed significantly.

This is the third televised mayoral debate in the last week. The candidates last met on Friday on WCNY and Monday on CNYCentral. Syracuse.com also hosted a live-streamed debate last month.

The debate originally aired at 5 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 5 on WSYR Channel 9. It will re-air at 11:35 p.m. Sunday night and again at 8 p.m. Monday on MeTV, channel 9.2. It is available online at localsyr.com.

Election day is Tuesday, Nov. 7.

Here are some takeaways from that debate:

1. Lavine goes on the offensive

Lavine was the aggressor in the final debate, using much of her time to directly and indirectly attack Walsh. A poll made public Sunday showed Walsh is leading Lavine by 23 points among Republican voters.

Lavine criticized Walsh's record in economic development, accused him of dirty politics and suggested his campaign has employed sexist strategies to discredit her and Perez Williams. When pressed by Cummings on that last issue, Lavine shied away slightly, saying she didn't have concrete evidence.

Walsh called the criticism unfair. He pointed to the support he's earned from female leaders in the community, including incoming Council President Helen Hudson, County Legislator Monica Williams and school board member Katie Sojewicz.

Perez Williams said while knocking on doors she's heard that people are concerned about her temperament, something she and Lavine referred to as a "whisper campaign" from Walsh's people.

"There are doors we knock on that tell us Ben Walsh is saying I have a temperament issue and it's something they need to be concerned with," Perez Williams said. "It certainly questions rising above. I'm going to be a mayor that stops this type of shaming people."

Walsh said there is no whisper campaign and the accusation was a distraction. He said he wanted to focus on issues, but also criticized Perez Williams' campaign for crashing a "Dems for Ben" event earlier this fall.

"No one has to whisper. People who have problems with Ms. Perez Williams have been willing to talk about it in the news, on the record," he said. "...I don't think we need to spend our time looking back. I want to stand on my record."

Lavine's initial accusation was in response to a question about how each candidate would engage citizens -- mostly young citizens -- in civic enterprises.

Hawkins kept out of the scrum and insisted voters are more concerned about the issues facing the city.

"This is why people don't vote, that's how that question started," he said. "Our problems are poverty...crime is too high. And we're talking about what people said about each other."

2. How do we keep the city from going broke?

The discussion began with a question about short-term city finances and how to keep the city afloat.

Perez Williams emphasized her relationships and said the city needs more help from partners at the county, state and federal level. She also said she would do a deployment assessment to see how the city uses its emergency responders and other services.

Walsh proposed a hotel occupancy tax and said he would return surplus city properties to taxable use. He also said he would re-examine water fees and consider shared services.

Hawkins touted revenue sharing. The city's share of state taxes has been cut to half a percent. Simply doubling that to one percent could generate more than $80 million, he said.

Lavine said the city needs to improve safety and cut police overtime.

3. What's your guiding philosophy?

For the final question, Cummings gave each candidate 20 seconds to describe their "guiding philosophy" as a leader.

Lavine said she's honest with people who ask her opinion and is honest when people give her their opinion.

Walsh said he relies on empathy. He said it's important to understand and appreciate where everyone is coming from.

Perez Williams emphasized her service. She said people want somebody who is in the community, serving the community.

Hawkins said he leads with respect and humility. He said a leader needs to be humble enough to know when someone else is right.

4. City-county merger a non-starter

Cummings asked if the candidates would consider any form of merger between the city and Onondaga County.

Walsh said he is open to innovative government but said he's not willing to "pre-determine the outcome." He said he doesn't support the plan proposed for a merger by the Consensus Commission.

Perez Williams said she would not support any plan to combine the city and the county.

"I don't believe that merging governments works," she said, citing cities like Los Angeles, California.

Hawkins and Lavine both opposed the proposed plan as well. Each cited the fact that the plan excluded the school districts. Lavine and Walsh recommended combining the city and county industrial development agencies.