Minnesota Governor Tim Walz won the veepstakes, as he was selected August 6 by presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris to be her running mate, according to multiple media outlets.
Harris confirmed the selection a couple of hours later. According to the White House, President Joe Biden spoke to both Harris and Walz.
"This morning, the president and vice president spoke on the phone ahead of her official announcement that she selected Governor Tim Walz as her vice presidential nominee. The president also spoke with Governor Walz to congratulate him on his selection" the White House stated.
Walz, 60, was expected to hit the campaign trail with Harris Tuesday in Philadelphia. The two are scheduled to make campaign appearances in several battleground states this week. They will formally accept the nomination when the Democrats hold their convention in Chicago beginning August 19.
In Walz, Harris found a governing partner who's progressive and brings a down home charm to the ticket. He's also not afraid to go after Republican former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance. It was Walz who first started using the word "weird" to describe the Republican ticket, to great effect among Harris supporters and others. The media has picked up on that messaging in recent weeks, reporting that Trump said he is not weird.
Walz is a former U.S. Army National Guard member and a former teacher.
According to his bio on the Minnesota governor's website, he was first elected governor in 2018 and won reelection in 2022. Accomplishments from his time as governor include providing universal free school meals for students, protecting reproductive freedom, strengthening voting rights, laying the groundwork to get Minnesota to 100% clean electricity by 2040, cutting taxes for the middle class, and expanding paid leave for Minnesota workers.
Prior to being elected governor, Walz served five terms in Congress.
Since President Joe Biden decided last month not to seek reelection and endorsed Harris, his vice president, she has reset the presidential race. CBS News reported Sunday that she has a 1-point edge nationally — something Biden never had (he was down by 5 points when he left the race) — and Harris and Trump are tied across collective battleground states.
The percentage of Democrats who say they'll "definitely vote" has risen to its highest point this year, CBS reported. That narrows the partisan "turnout gap" that's been seen throughout the campaign.
And today much higher numbers of Black voters say they'll vote, compared to July when Biden was the nominee, the network reported.
Harris would be the first Black female president, the first South Asian president, and the first woman president if she were elected. A former junior U.S. senator and attorney general for California, Harris started her political career by defeating San Francisco's incumbent district attorney in 2003; in all three positions she was the first female woman of color elected to them.
Last week, during an appearance at the National Black Journalists Association, Trump used racist language to describe Harris, saying he didn't know "when she turned Black."
Harris clinched the votes to become the Democratic Party's nominee August 2 after a virtual meeting of the Democratic National Committee. That became official Monday, August 5, according to party Chair Jaime Harrison.
Updated, 8/6/24: This article has been updated.
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