Vice President Harris has chosen Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) to be her running mate as she heads toward a November faceoff against Donald Trump, according to two sources familiar.
Walz, 60, emerged as a dark horse contender for the No. 2 slot as chatter over other high-profile names, in particular Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly (D), dominated the early portion of the veepstakes.
But the Minnesota governor saw his profile rise considerably over the last week, especially after a viral cable news interview in which he derided some Republicans as “weird” — a line of attack later adopted by national Democrats.
Walz was also seen by many as a safer choice for Harris thanks to his liberal bona fides and the fact that some of the other contenders had come under fire from certain segments of the left. Shapiro received heavy scrutiny recently over his response to pro-Palestinian protests that emerged in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war, while both he and Kelly drew the ire of union leaders.
Adding to Walz’s appeal is the fact that he hails from a Midwestern state that Trump has increasingly set his sights on flipping. Though Biden won Minnesota in 2020 by 7 points, and no Republican has won the presidential race there in more than 50 years, Trump and his running mate JD Vance have stepped up their efforts to campaign in the state.
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