Kamala Harris Chooses Tim Walz as Vice Presidential Candidate

Vice President Kamala Harris announced Tuesday that Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will be her running mate, choosing against Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who has catapulted onto the national stage as a possible second-place candidate.

Walz, 60, is a second-term governor, former congressman and retired teacher who served in the Army National Guard. In recent weeks, he rose from little-known Democrat to his party’s vice presidential candidate as he flooded the airwaves with criticism of Republicans that was clipped and amplified on social media.

“As I have said many times over the past few weeks, the decision to select a vice presidential candidate was a deeply personal decision for the vice president — and it was a deeply personal decision for me, too,” Shapiro said in a statement after the announcement. “The people of Pennsylvania elected me to serve a four-year term as their governor, and my work here is far from over.”

The choice raises Walz, who has avoided any sedate scrutiny during the public vetting process. His background and down-to-earth charm are things the campaign hopes to attract voters in places like Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, even though Walz comes from a reliably blue state. It also meant Harris picked a favorite of some progressive Democrats who have criticized Shapiro. Walz, with a Democratic-controlled legislature, has ushered in a progressive agenda in his state last year, legalizing marijuana and passing sweeping protections for LGBTQ people.

Harris and Walz are expected to appear together for the first time as co-candidates at a rally Tuesday night in Philadelphia, where Shapiro is also scheduled to deliver a speech.

Shapiro has faced the most backlash of any of the top finalists on the prospect of running. While top Democrats and more than 50 state union leaders overwhelmingly supported his candidacy, a handful of vocal opponents have highlighted his past support for vouchers and staunch support for Israel in the Gaza war as off-putting to some in the party’s liberal wing.

This may have influenced Harris’ decision as she sought to maintain party unity with less than 100 days until Election Day.

“It didn’t help,” Philadelphia Democratic Party Chairman Bob Brady said of the scrutiny surrounding Shapiro, including some critics from within his own party. Brady called the selection of Walz, with whom he served in Congress, “bittersweet.” He said he still believes Democrats would be in a better position to win Pennsylvania with Shapiro on the ticket.

“You wouldn’t have respect for me if I said it didn’t matter,” Brady said. “It does matter, but that doesn’t mean we can’t win this.”

Shapiro is the state’s third Jewish governor and has become one of the nation’s most prominent Jewish politicians. Although he has high approval ratings and accomplishments, such as quickly handling the collapse of a bridge on Interstate 95 last year, he has been governor for less than two years and could be susceptible to criticism that he has not built much of a legislative legacy in the governor’s mansion.

Republicans immediately labeled Walz a “dangerous liberal extremist.”

“It’s no wonder San Francisco liberal Kamala Harris wants a West Coast running mate, Tim Walz,” said Karoline Leavitt, a spokeswoman for former President Donald Trump’s campaign. “If Walz won’t tell voters the truth, we will: Like Kamala Harris, Tim Walz is a dangerously liberal extremist, and the Harris-Walz dream in California is every American’s nightmare.”

Democrats plan to combat such messaging around Walz “by simply being governor,” said Brendan McPhillips, a senior adviser to the Harris campaign.

How Shapiro Lost the Vice Presidential Election

Shapiro, 51, of Abington, has long been seen as a potential White House candidate, and his landslide 14-point victory in the 2022 gubernatorial race in the swing state of Pennsylvania cemented his status as one of the party’s top political talents in a key battleground state.

Shapiro was widely seen as a potential 2028 presidential candidate before President Joe Biden’s decision to drop out of the race gave him a fresh chance. Before Harris’ announcement, some political observers privately wondered whether the ambitious Shapiro would be ready for the No. 2 job on the presidential ticket.

That ambition could hurt him when he was being vetted for the job. Shapiro strategically avoided cable news shows as Walz flooded the shows, publicly auditioning for the job. He said he didn’t want to put undue pressure on Harris’ “deeply personal decision.”

“I think there’s going to be a lot of questioning about how he handled this,” said a Shapiro ally in Harrisburg who declined to be identified as a critic of Shapiro’s approach. “Instead of pushing forward like Walz, he took a backseat approach.”

But two sources familiar with the vetting process said that despite Shapiro’s somewhat subtle campaign, his ambition was still a factor working against him. Democratic Sen. John Fetterman, who doesn’t get along with Shapiro, reportedly told staff he didn’t think the Pennsylvania governor was a good fit for the job. due to his professional aspirations.

The public pressure from party leaders on Shapiro also took an embarrassing turn when Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker released a promotional video earlier that appeared to name Shapiro as the official candidate.

What does this mean to you, Pa.?

In his search for a running mate, Shapiro’s connection to Pennsylvania was perhaps his strongest selling point. The state is widely considered a must-win for Democrats this year. Shapiro has won by wide margins in his last few statewide elections and is well-liked by some Republican and independent voters. While there is little evidence that a vice presidential candidate’s home state historically helps win a state, Shapiro’s popularity here was seen as an asset.

But Walz has a personal story that could have unique appeal in the Midwest and rural Pennsylvania, where President Joe Biden has regained enough Democratic votes to win the state.

“People keep saying Pennsylvania is the Midwest, but Montgomery County is not,” said one Democratic state strategist. “So if you’re trying to keep working-class America drawn to Joe Biden, Tim Walz does it more than Josh Shapiro.”

By resigning, Shapiro could also free up more time to campaign for Harris in her home state without having to travel across the country.

McPhillips, the Harris campaign adviser, told reporters that Shapiro would remain a key campaign partner.

“The governor hasn’t gone anywhere. He will continue to actively campaign for the nomination,” McPhillips added. “He just issued a statement of support, and I’m sure that when Pennsylvania voters get to know Governor Walz, there will be a lot to love about him.”

Some Pennsylvania Republicans praised Walz as a better choice than Shapiro, whom they viewed as a more troubling opponent.

“Thank you, Kamala,” said Pat Poprik, chairman of the Bucks County GOP. “I want to send her a thank-you card.”

Even though he was not elected, Shapiro will certainly continue to campaign as his replacement, starting with a speech at a rally in Philadelphia on Tuesday night.

“She is a fearless leader,” Shapiro said of Harris at an event in Philadelphia earlier this month. “She has always put the people before the powerful, whether it was in the courtroom, in the corridors of power or in the vice president’s office. She never forgot the people who got her there. She never forgot where she came from.”

Staff writers Anna Orso, Fallon Roth, Jeremy Roebuck and Andrew Seidman contributed to this report.