Tuesday night marks the second round of four Boston mayoral debates between Marty Walsh and John Connolly, taking place at the WGBH studios at 7 p.m. As expected the first head-to-head between the two City Hall hopefuls was rather cordial and conservative, with both sides looking to address the issues facing them rather than attack their opponent. But now that both candidates have taken their respective stances on issues, what do they have to do to keep the momentum in their favor?

Marty Walsh is in the exact position he wants to be in. Steadily, he’s gained the favor of voters by actively hitting the streets, by making clear and comprehensive policy announcements and by continuing to snag the endorsement of nearly every big-namer in town.

But for Walsh, tonight’s strategy could be to take a more aggressive approach toward Connolly.

Prior to the first debate, Co-Director of UMass Lowel’s Center for Public Opinion Joshua Dyck told BostInno that, “The most effective strategy for Walsh at this point is to go negative on Connolly. It is, to be sure, one of the ugliest parts of politics, but people do it because it works.”

And though Walsh has yet to openly say anything negative about Connolly or his campaign, except disagree with nitty-gritty details, he hasn’t done anything to stop anyone else on his behalf.

Over the weekend John Connolly acknowledged that a political action committee had been actively circulating negative flyers toward him and his mayoral bid in support of Walsh. The State Representative and former union official plead “no comment” when confronted with his willingness to accept private campaign donations, an issue Connolly was inferring might sway his mind in times of political turmoil.

Another PAC provided the funding for a video in which punk rock group the Dropkick Murphys to rewrote the lyrics for – and screamed sang — “Shipping Up to Boston” to “Marty Walsh for Boston.”

Still, the Boston public is becoming increasingly content with Walsh and, per the latest polls, has significantly closed the favorability gap between himself and Connolly.

The reason for such could be that Walsh spent all of last week laying out policy concepts for sustainable energy and the environment, to remedy the state of Boston’s economy, his commitment to arts and sciences and why consolidating developmental agencies would benefit Boston’s socioeconomic ecosystem.

Connolly has been no slouch, though, making plenty of community appearances ŕ la Walsh but has not been as vocal in outlining his specific plans for the future. Sure, the “education candidate” is in strong support of public school reform, increasing diversity throughout the municipal ranks, and bridging the gap between big business, small business and women, but he has yet to achieve the kind of eloquence that Walsh has.

Up until now, both candidates have done a wonderful job of focusing their campaigns on what makes Boston problematic while playing to their strengths to the benefit of the city. It’ll be interesting to see if things begin to take a negative turn here, or if Connolly comes out swinging at Walsh.

Be sure to tune in to BostInno tonight at 7 p.m. ET to live stream the second mayoral debate.

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