Who is Tim Walz? Meet one of the six top names on Harris’s VP short list

With President Joe Biden bowing out of the race less than four months before Election Day, attention has shifted toward presumed nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris. In the aftermath, many notable Democrats, including former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), have endorsed her bid to be commander in chief. Others have inched close to her side, hoping to be her running mate.

Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN) has recently surfaced in Democratic circles as a potential companion to a Harris presidential ticket. Upon announcing her newborn campaign, Walz quickly endorsed Harris, keeping vice presidential buzz to a minimum while many of his Midwestern colleagues continuously nudged his name into the fold.

Betty McCollum and Keith Ellison, a Minnesota representative and the state’s attorney general, respectively, have been his most vocal supporters.

“I know Tim Walz and he’s a great Midwesterner through and through,” Ellison said. “He’s extremely well positioned.”

But who exactly is Tim Walz?

Age

Tim Walz was born on April 6, 1964. He is 60 years old.

Hometown

Walz was born in West Point, Nebraska, but spent most of his childhood in Chadron, a rural town bordering South Dakota.

Education

He attended Butte High School, graduating with a very small class of 25. Walz later graduated from Chadron State College with a degree in social science education, then received a master’s in educational leadership from Minnesota State University, Mankato, in 2001.

Career

Born in rural West Point, Nebraska, Walz began his life with the hope of making a difference as a school teacher. His first teaching position was at South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, and he later went on to teach in China with the organization WorldTeach.

For 24 years, Walz served as a noncommissioned officer in the United States National Reserve. During his time in the service, Walz was often assigned to disaster response, rescuing people from danger and rebuilding communities destroyed by tornadoes, floods, and other natural disasters. In 1989, Walz received the Nebraska Citizen-Soldier of the Year distinction and retired as a master sergeant in 2005. A civilian once again, Walz returned to teaching at Mankato West High School.

In 2006, Walz ran for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives for Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District. Defeating Republican incumbent Gil Gutknecht, Walz went on to serve six consecutive terms until 2016, serving on the House Agriculture Committee and the Committee on Veterans Affairs.

In 2018, Walz became the governor of Minnesota, winning reelection in 2022 as well. In office during the death of George Floyd and its subsequent protests, Walz signed multiple police reform bills into law and condemned Derek Chauvin, the police officer charged with Floyd’s murder. Walz also legalized recreational marijuana in 2023 after years of advocating the decriminalization of cannabis.

Family

Tim Walz married Gwen Whipple in 1994. They lived in Mankato, Minnesota, for 20 years before moving to St. Paul when Walz became governor. They have two children.

Major policy initiatives

As a public school teacher for 20 years, much of Walz’s time in Washington and as governor has been spent bolstering the education system. As governor he has passed a $2.3 billion education budget, the largest in Minnesota’s history. Walz has also passed various laws that ensure students are able to receive free breakfast and lunch at school.

He has been endorsed by the National Education Association and the American Association of University Women, among others. He believes in lowering tuition costs and has opposed merit-based pay for teachers.

His other main focus has been on veterans affairs and advocating active-duty military personnel. Walz has pursued the goal of ending veteran homelessness in Minnesota as well as bolstering veteran bonuses and veterans homes.

“By expanding service bonuses, investing in veterans homes and the health of our service members, and moving Minnesota closer to ending veterans homelessness, this bill will improve the lives of veterans and service members across the state,” Walz said in a press release.

He has also invested in the Minnesota National Guard, and in 2008, he supported a G.I. Bill designed to bolster veterans’ education benefits and even hand down tuition assistance to family members.

During his tenure in Congress and as governor, Walz has supported women’s reproductive health and the right to an abortion, voting along Democratic Party lines. Planned Parenthood has given him a 100% rating, while the National Life Committee has given him a rating of 0%.

Walz has also been a vehement supporter of LGBT rights for years and called for the end of the military’s “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy and support for the Respect for Marriage Act. While in office, he has also flip-flopped on his position on gun rights. Beginning as a staunch supporter of the Second Amendment, he received multiple endorsements from the National Rifle Association while in Congress. After the 2018 Parkland High School shooting, Walz denounced the NRA and claimed he would donate the $18,000 they contributed to his campaigns to the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund.

Comments on potential vice presidency

Walz told reporters on Tuesday that he would “be there to do anything [he] can do to help” but mostly dodged the questions about potentially becoming Harris’s running mate. When asked if his name was part of the conversation, he again claimed to not have any information.

“I do not know that,” he said. “I spoke to the vice president on Sunday, shortly after the announcement by President Biden, and she just made it clear that she wants to earn the endorsement.”

“I don’t think you turn down a job that you haven’t been offered,” he continued, “but I have the best job in the world in being the governor of Minnesota.”