Republican candidates for president were forced into a difficult balancing act on immigration during a debate last night, according to this New York Times account of the event, which was broadcast on the Spanish-language television station Univision.

At the debate, which was held at the University of Miami, the candidates tried to offend neither the Hispanic audience nor the Republican base many of them have tried to appeal to by taking a hard line on illegal immigration, the newspaper reported. In general, the candidate toned down their rhetoric but still vowed to take strong measures to close off the country’s borders to illegal immigration.

The question of what to do about the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants living in the United States and how much public aid they should receive for education have ignited fierce debate in the presidential campaign, especially among Republicans.

The Chronicle examined this debate in this week’s issue.