Politics

Harris selects Tim Walz as vice presidential running mate

Written by ABC Audio ALL RIGHTS RESERVED on August 6, 2024

(WASHINGTON) — Vice President Kamala Harris selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her vice presidential running mate to help her challenge Donald Trump and JD Vance in November.

Walz, 60, made a name for himself in the veepstakes as he gained major traction online with his folksy mannerisms and viral comments calling Trump and Vance “weird.”

He served in the Army National Guard and was a high school social studies teacher and football coach before he was elected to Congress in 2006.

He won six terms in the U.S. House representing a rural area of the state that had typically leaned conservative.

As governor, he’s implemented a bevy of progressive policies, including paid family leave, universal school breakfast and lunch, legalization of recreational marijuana use, state codification of abortion rights and gun control measures like universal background checks and red flag laws.

As a surrogate for Harris these past few weeks, Walz has praised her for reenergizing Democrats and defended her record against Trump’s attacks claiming she is “ultra-liberal.”

“He’s going to roll it out, mispronounce names, you know, to try and make the case,” Walz said of Trump attacking Harris during a recent appearance on CNN. “The fact of the matter is where you see the policies that Vice President Harris was a part of making, Democratic governors across the country executed those policies and quality of life is higher, the economies are better, all of those things, educational attainment is better.”

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.