Democrats are hoping the choice of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who once served in Congress on the House Agriculture Committee, as their vice presidential candidate will gain them support in rural areas and in the battleground states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.
While in the House representing southern Minnesota's rural 1st District, Walz was a “loyal lieutenant” on the Ag Committee, former Chairman Collin Peterson, also a Minnesota Democrat, told Agri-Pulse.
Walz “understands the issues,” Peterson said. “He's been in the middle of them. That's not something that we've had in a vice president, or even a president for that matter.”
However, pointing out a potential vulnerability that Republicans will try to exploit, Peterson added, "He's gone a little bit to the left from where he was when he was in Congress, but hopefully on those core issues, he's still the Tim Walz that I've worked with."
A colleague on the Ag Committee, Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., praised Vice President Kamala Harris’s choice, first mentioning that Walz “is a totally nice guy, and we have a shortage of those kinds of people in Washington these days.”
McGovern said Walz will be most effective because “he tells people what he believes. He calls them as he sees them. He doesn't poll-test every sentence he utters, like some politicians do.”
Rep. Jim McGovernLike the vast majority of Americans, Walz also doesn't come from a privileged background, McGovern said, noting he was a football coach when he taught high school and “knows how to put a team together.”
McGovern, who is perhaps the leading anti-hunger advocate in Congress, also praised Minnesota's enactment of universal free school meals during Walz's tenure.
Walz realized when he was a teacher that a school meal "is every bit as important to a child's ability to learn as a textbook or a laptop," McGovern said.
The Minnesota Farmers Union voiced strong support for Walz.
“It's unequivocally good for Farmers Union and agriculture more broadly,” MFU President Gary Wertish told Agri-Pulse. “As governor, Walz has been an engaged advocate for family farmers and he'll be informed because he served on the House Ag Committee when he was in Congress. This is good for the ticket and shows that the vice president is committed to representing rural America.”
Specifically, Wertish said, “Just last month he visited an MFU member’s farm to talk about Minnesota's beginning farmer tax credit and soil health programs — initiatives we'd love to see on the federal level.”
Minnesota Farm Bureau President Dan Glessing said he was “certainly glad to see a Minnesotan” become a candidate for vice president.
Dan Glessing, Minnesota Farm Burea "Certainly we're not going to agree on every policy, but all in all, from his time in Congress into the time as governor, he's been accessible," Glessing said. "His staff is great to work with, so at the end of the day, that's that's what we're most excited about, is the accessibility of his office."Walz grew up in rural Nebraska before moving to Minnesota after getting married in 1993. He was a social studies teacher for 20 years and also served in the National Guard for 24 years, rising to the rank of command sergeant major.
He ran for Congress in 2006 and won six elections before bowing out to run for governor in 2018. He won his first race against Republican Jeff Johnson with nearly 54% of the vote. In 2022, his margin was not quite as robust, but he still won solidly over Scott Jensen, 52.3% to 42.6%.
Walz worked on farm bills that passed in 2008, 2014 and 2018, and McGovern said he pushed hard to provide incentives for young and beginning farmers and veterans.
Walz voted for both the 2008 and 2014 farm bills on final passage. The vote on the 2018 bill came in December after Walz won election as governor.
“His fingerprints are all over programs that would help provide support for new farmers and veteran farmers,” McGovern said. “As vice president, he'll be a strong voice for agriculture and for farmers, and especially for new farmers and for small and medium-sized farms as well.”
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Walz expressed skepticism about trade deals, voting against a proposed deal with Peru in 2007 and trade pacts with Colombia and Panama before supporting one with South Korea in 2011. He also joined most Democrats in opposing “fast-track” authority to negotiate the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement with Pacific Rim countries. Then-President Donald Trump subsequently withdrew the United States from the TPP.
He voted for a bill that authorized federal preemption of state biotech food labeling laws that passed the House 275-150 in 2015 before the Senate added language requiring disclosure of genetically modified ingredients.
Despite enthusiasm for Walz, driven in part by the belief he can bridge the gap with rural voters, his own performance in gubernatorial elections has been less than stellar outside metro areas.
Walz’s 8-point-win in the governor’s race in 2022 was due to his performance in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, MSNBC analyst Steve Kornacki said on the air Tuesday, noting that in largely rural Stearns County, Walz picked up only 36.9% of the vote. That was slightly better than Hillary Clinton did against Trump in 2016, but well under Barack Obama’s 42.8% in 2012.
Still, McGovern said he thinks Walz “will do well in rural areas, but I also think his message of positivity will resonate all over the country, in urban, rural and suburban areas. People are tired of the negativity.”
Walz’s stance on climate change aligns closely with Harris, who is part of an administration that has made ambitious efforts to reduce greenhouse gases through money in the Inflation Reduction Act. He pushed Minnesota to adopt California’s vehicle standards under the Clean Air Act and “pursued a green grid" in Minnesota, said an analysis by ClearView Energy Partners.
“Tim Walz has made Minnesota a national climate leader,” NRDC Action Fund President and Manish Bapna said. “Under his leadership, the North Star State committed to 100% clean energy by 2040 and became the first midwestern state to adopt California’s tailpipe emissions standards. He’s stood up for safe drinking water for all Minnesotans, signing a bill last year to direct $240 million to replace lead [water] service lines statewide.”
Walz signed a bill last year making Minnesota the fourth state to provide universal school meals.
“As a former teacher, I know that providing free breakfast and lunch for our students is one of the best investments we can make to lower costs, support Minnesota’s working families, and care for our young learners and the future of our state,” Walz said in March 2023.
Republicans, however, are sharpening their attacks. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., called Harris “a San Francisco radical” and Trump's campaign called the ticket “dangerously liberal.”
“Walz would be a rubber stamp for Kamala to wage war on American energy, continue aiding and abetting an invasion on our border, and embolden our adversaries as the world is brought to the brink of World War III,” said Brian Hughes, a senior Trump campaign adviser.
Trump himself said in a fund-raising email that Walz would “unleash HELL ON EARTH.”
Senate Republican Whip John Thune of South Dakota, a leading candidate to become Majority Leader, said in a post on X, "The Harris-Walz ticket is the most radical and liberal presidential ticket in history. We can’t turn the country into California. Vote Trump-Vance."
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