Harris picks Walz for vice president

Vice President Harris has chosen Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate in the presidential race against former President Trump and Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio.

News of Harris’s choice broke early today, but at 10:30 a.m., Harris for President officially announced the choice of Walz.

Vice President Harris wrote: “I am proud to announce that I’ve asked Gov. Tim Walz to be my running mate. One of the things that stood out to me about Tim is how his convictions on fighting for middle-class families run deep. It’s personal. As a governor, a coach, a teacher, and a veteran, he’s delivered for working families like his own. We are going to build a great partnership. We start out as underdogs but I believe together, we can win this election.”

Walz served on the House Agriculture Committee when he was a member of the House of Representatives.

Dan Glickman, the former Kansas House member and Agriculture secretary in the Clinton administration, said in an email, “I think this is a good choice for Kamala. Walz has rural and small-town appeal, which should help him in those parts of battleground states. He is affable and has a great sense of humor, important in these toxic political times. And long-term military and congressional service.”

“I think he will make Dems more competitive in western Wisconsin, central Pennsylvania, and central and northern Michigan,” Glickman added.

The choice of Walz is likely to boost the prominence of Collin Peterson of Minnesota, who chaired the House Agriculture Committee when Walz was a member of the committee and its subcommittees.

Peterson, who lost to now-Rep. Michelle Fischbach, a Republican, in 2020, now lobbies for agricultural interests.

Harris is scheduled to introduce her running mate at an event at 5:30 p.m. today in Philadelphia.

Walz is scheduled to participate in a virtual Rural Dems for Harris event at 8 p.m.