Who is Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a potential Harris VP pick?

After Vice President Kamala Harris became the Democratic frontrunner in the presidential election following President Joe Biden’s departure from the race on Sunday, Democrats are now racing to select Harris’ running mate as she gets ready to go up against the Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump in November.

Although no choices have been made yet, the Harris campaign has requested vetting materials from potential vice presidential nominee picks, including North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, based on previous reporting by USA TODAY.

Walz, a newer name on the list of speculated Harris VP picks, leads a state that borders the “blue wall,” a group of states that hug the Great Lakes, including Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania and are key for Democrats to win the White House. The last time Minnesota went for a Republican presidential candidate was for Richard Nixon in 1972, but some think it could turn red for Trump.

The North Star State has a track record of producing vice presidents, including Hubert Humphrey and Walter Mondale, and now Walz has a shot at joining the club.

Who is Tim Walz?

A member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, Walz was elected governor in 2018 and won re-election in 2022. His pre-political background includes military service and a career in education. Walz joined the Army National Guard after graduating high school and went on to teach and coach high school football. After he retired from the military in 2005, Walz represented Minnesota’s First Congressional District from 2006 to 2019.

He serves as the co-chair of the Democratic National Convention’s rules committee, which means he could play a key part in the nomination process ahead of the convention in August.

After the Democrats won the state’s legislative chambers and the governor’s office in 2022, Minnesota approved the right to abortion and other reproductive health care in the state, established universal free school meals for students and created protections for gender-affirming care.

Could Walz be Harris’s VP pick?

Although the Democratic vice president selection process is still in its early stages, Walz said he had recently spoken with the vice president.

In an interview on Fox News on Tuesday, Walz was asked if Harris’s team was vetting him. He replied, “Look, I spoke with the Vice President. I’m not going to get into exactly what we spoke about, but we have the same values. We believe we can win in the Midwest.”

“Democratic states are protecting … things like reproductive rights, your ability to be able to marry who you wish to marry, those types of things that are basic American values,” said Walz. “And so my case on that is I will do what’s ever necessary to make sure that those values are front and center,” he continued.