Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party’s candidate for the United States presidential election, has selected Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate.
Harris announced her choice in a text message to supporters on Tuesday and will introduce Walz at a rally in Philadelphia later today.
Harris’s selection of a progressive policy advocate and a straightforward communicator from America’s heartland is intended to help her win over rural, white voters in the November 5 election.
Harris, the first woman and first Black and South Asian person to serve as vice president, considered a wide range of candidates during a rapid vetting process for the race for the White House, following President Joe Biden’s decision to end his re-election bid on July 21.
Walz, 60, was elected to a Republican-leaning district in the US House of Representatives in 2006, serving 12 years before becoming governor of Minnesota and being re-elected in 2022. His nomination brings to the ticket a record of defeating Republicans in a Midwestern state.
A veteran of the US Army National Guard, Walz co-chairs the Democratic National Convention’s rules committee.
As governor, Walz has promoted a progressive agenda, including free school meals, climate change initiatives, middle-class tax cuts, and expanded paid leave for Minnesota workers.
Walz has long championed women’s reproductive rights, overseeing state approval of the right to abortion and protected gender-affirming care. However, while representing a rural district in the US House, he also displayed a conservative stance, defending agricultural interests and supporting gun rights.
Harris, the 59-year-old daughter of immigrants from Jamaica and India, is adding a popular Midwestern politician whose home state votes reliably for Democrats in presidential elections but is close to Wisconsin and Michigan, two crucial battleground states.
She will hold a major rally with her vice-presidential pick later today in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, followed by rallies in Wisconsin, Michigan, North Carolina, Arizona, and Nevada through Saturday.
The duo will face off against the Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump, and his running mate JD Vance in the November election.
Trump’s campaign on Tuesday criticized Walz as a left-wing radical.
“If Walz won’t tell voters the truth, we will: just like Kamala Harris, Tim Walz is a dangerously liberal extremist,” said Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s campaign press secretary, in a statement.
Walz has previously referred to Trump and Vance as “weird,” a term that has been adopted by the Harris campaign, social media, and Democratic activists.
