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Kamala Harris selects Tim Walz as her running mate

August 06, 2024
John Haltiwanger
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has been tapped as VP Kamala Harris's running mate.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has been tapped as VP Kamala Harris's running mate.

REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz

Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, a day after she formally secured the Democratic presidential nomination.

Walz, 60, is a progressive who could help boost Harris with rural voters and in the Midwest, a crucial region with key swing states like Michigan and Wisconsin. His home state of Minnesota has 10 electoral votes up for grabs.

The ex-school teacher and US Army National Guard veteran served in the House from 2007 to 2019, and has strong relationships with his former colleagues on Capitol Hill.

As governor, he’s pursued a progressive agenda — including legalizing marijuana, free school meals, and codifying the right to abortion into law — that could make him a popular choice with voters on the left.

Walz recently went viral for describing the Republican ticket as “weird,” which quickly became a new line of attack for Democrats against former President Donald Trump and his running-mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio.

That said, Walz is relatively unknown nationally. This could work in his favor, but it also means Democrats have their work cut out for them in terms of selling the new Democratic ticket to voters as Election Day draws nearer. We’ll be watching to see how Democrats approach this challenge in the days to come, particularly at the party’s convention in Chicago set to begin on Aug. 19.

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