(WASHINGTON) — As Vice President Kamala Harris continues to search for her 2024 running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is receiving some new buzz.
Walz, a veteran and former public school teacher now in his second term as governor, is making a name for himself in the veepstakes conversation as he stumps for Harris on the campaign trail and in cable news hits on CNN, MSNBC and even Fox News.
Clips of him at an event for Harris in St. Paul on Saturday clad in a simple gray T-shirt and camouflage baseball hat have gone viral online, as are his comments describing Donald Trump and J.D. Vance as “weird” people.
While he hasn’t said if he’s received vetting materials from the Harris campaign, Walz said on Sunday it was “certainly an honor” to be mentioned as a possible pick.
“I put him pretty low, as most of us did, as a candidate for vice president but he’s absolutely everywhere at this point and he’s getting a really good bounce,” said David Schultz, a professor of political science at Hamline University in Minnesota.
Walz, 60, 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 served for six terms in the U.S. House of Representatives representing a rural area of the state that had typically leaned conservative.
As governor, with the help of a narrow Democratic majority in the state legislature, 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.
“He’s good at articulating the argument for the Democratic Party’s agenda and he himself can say, ‘Look, I’m an example. My state is an example of what happens when you elect Democrats,'” said Schultz.
“He seems to have some buzz with some progressives, with some younger voters at this point,” he added. “He’s been able to check the box with a lot of critical constituencies in terms of where he stands on a variety of issues.”
One vocal supporter of Walz in recent days has been David Hogg, the co-founder of March for Our Lives — one of the country’s largest youth-led movements. The group made its first-ever presidential endorsement in support of Harris last week.
Hogg has said Walz would make an “incredible VP” and praised the governor as “so down to earth and such an excellent communicator.”
Others online have shared similar views, saying Walz “talks like a human” and comes across as “authentic.”
“Governor Walz has caught fire not because of one viral interview but because he talks to voters like they’re his neighbors,” said Tim Hogan, a Democratic strategist who was the communications director for Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s 2020 presidential campaign.
“He speaks in a way that is real, and the more voters learn about him, the more they like him,” Hogan said. “With a slim majority in Minnesota, he lowered costs for families and improved health care. It’s a Prairie Populist agenda that has worked in the Midwest, and he’s now bringing it to the national stage.”
As a surrogate for Harris, Walz has praised her for reenergizing the party and has 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 an appearance Sunday 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.”
Walz’s communication style, Midwest bonafides and blue-collar background could make him an attractive pick for Harris.
Still, there are things working against him when it come to what Harris may be seeking in a running mate, Schultz said.
Unlike other contenders, such as Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly or Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Walz doesn’t represent a key 2024 swing state battleground.
And his record, while a boon for Democrats, could be fodder for Republicans to tag a Harris-Walz ticket as too progressive.
“By Minnesota standards, Walz is center-left,” Schultz said. “If you look at the critical swing states across the United States, like Georgia and Pennsylvania, he’s absolutely liberal in those states.”
Walz has also responded to criticisms that he may be viewed as too liberal.
“What a monster!” Walz quipped on CNN. “Kids are eating and having full bellies so they can go learn and women are making their own healthcare decisions … So, if that’s where they want to label me, I’m more than happy to take the label.”
There are about 12 people being considered for Harris’s running mate, a source familiar with the matter told ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce. Harris is expected to make her announcement by Aug. 7.
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