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By Ewan Palmer
News Reporter
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Following weeks of speculation, Vice President Kamala Harris confirmed on Tuesday that Minnesota Governor Tim Walz would be her running mate in the 2024 election, and the pair appeared together at a campaign rally in Philadelphia later that night.
Also joining Harris and Walz on Tuesday night was Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, who was previously considered the favorite to be named Harris' running mate. Shapiro was seen as a way for Harris to secure a win in Pennsylvania, whose 19 electoral votes make it the most crucial battleground state of the election.
Christopher Devine, an associate professor of political science at the University of Dayton and author of Do Running Mates Matter?: The Influence of Vice Presidential Candidates in Presidential Elections, said Walz's military and political experience—the Democrat served as a congressman for 12 years before being elected governor—means he is "well qualified" to be vice president.
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"His selection should reassure voters about Kamala Harris' judgment as a potential president," Devine told Newsweek.
He continued: "After all, she could have made the more politically expedient choice by picking Shapiro, simply to win his home state and perhaps help win the election. But he is a first-term governor who has never served in federal office and lacks foreign policy experience. Walz is a two-term governor who served for more than a decade in Congress.
"He is ready to be vice president, or even president, on Day One, in a way that Shapiro and other VP finalists simply weren't."
Other qualities Walz has that may prove highly beneficial include his work as a public school teacher and a successful career as a football coach before entering politics.
He can also cite his military credentials after serving in the National Guard for 24 years, rising to command sergeant major.
Born and raised in Nebraska and representing a largely agricultural district in Minnesota, Walz could appeal to rural voters who have tended to back Trump in recent years. The proximity of Walz's constituency of Minnesota may also help win support in other Midwestern states, including the battleground states of Michigan and Wisconsin.
Walz's actions as Minnesota's governor, such as enshrining abortion rights into law and funding free school meals for all children, could also help entice progressive voters.
"He is a safe, smart choice politically," Cary Coglianese, a professor of political science at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, told Newsweek.
"He brings military experience and a rural Midwestern vibe to the ticket. But he is also a very effective spokesperson for progressive values and will help motivate turnout from the Democratic base. For these reasons, Walz is the choice most likely to add appeal both to progressives as well as independents, which is a rare combination," he continued.
Coglianese said Harris has taken some risk by "not putting all her chips on the table in Pennsylvania," but he added that she needs to consider how she can win across the country, and Pennsylvania is winnable even without Shapiro on the ticket.
"And I would fully expect that Shapiro will nevertheless be doing all he can to deliver Pennsylvania to the Harris-Walz campaign," Coglianese continued.
Walz is credited with starting the Democratic attack line calling former President Donald Trump and other GOP figures "weird," which arguably helped his name recognition rise on a national scale prior to being named Harris' running mate.
Christopher Borick, a professor of political science and the director of the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion, said that Walz's ability to deliver Democrats' core messages, including why Trump is "such a threat," made him the front-runner.
"Walz has the ability to win over progressives with some of his policy positions while his style and affect give him reach into more centrist parts of the electorate," Borick told Newsweek.
"I think he will also get under Trump's skin and perhaps provoke some damaging responses from the former president," he added.
During the Philadelphia rally, Walz criticized the Republican presidential nominee and his running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance, and repeated his view that they are "creepy" and "weird as hell."
"If Trump gets a chance to return, he's going to pick up exactly where he left off four years ago. Only this time, it will be much, much worse," Walz said.
He continued: "Raising costs on middle-class families. He will repeal the Affordable Care Act. No doubt about it. He'll gut Social Security and Medicare.
"And when somebody tells you who they are, believe him. He said he'd ban abortion across this country, and he'll do it whether or not Congress is there."
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