Harris picks Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as running mate

WASHINGTON, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) — U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, who has won enough delegate votes to secure the Democratic presidential nomination, unveiled Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate on Tuesday.
“As a governor, a coach, a teacher, and a veteran, he’s delivered for working families like his. It’s great to have him on the team,” Harris said on the X platform.
According to CNN and the Associated Press, Harris has selected Walz as her running mate, a pairing aimed at strengthening support for the Democrats among rural and white voters in Midwestern states.
Harris, who is the daughter of Indian and Jamaican immigrants, with the choice of Walz, aims to broaden the Democratic Party’s appeal for a wider range of votes in this election, which is only three months away.
Walz, 60, previously served as a U.S. House Representative. He was elected Governor of Minnesota in 2018 and re-elected in 2022.
The choice of Walz creates a ticket that many Democrats have said would be “politically beneficial,” according to The Washington Post. Harris, who spent much of her career in deep-blue California, “chose from a list of finalists populated by White men, including Walz, who have represented more competitive swaths of the country,” the report said.
Harris, 59, served as District Attorney of San Francisco and Attorney General of California, before serving as a U.S. Senator.
By choosing Walz, she has opted for an experienced politician with executive leadership skills, highlighting the significance of Midwestern swing states like Wisconsin and Michigan.
Walz emerged from a crowded field of potential vice-presidential picks. Over the weekend, Harris interviewed three finalists: Walz, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, and Arizona Senator Mark Kelly.
Later on Tuesday, Harris will introduce Walz at a campaign event in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The five-day online voting by thousands of Democratic delegates concluded on Monday evening, and the Democratic National Committee announced around midnight that Harris had received 99 percent of the delegate votes, officially securing the party’s presidential nomination.
The Democratic National Convention is scheduled from Aug. 19 to 22 in Chicago, where Harris is expected to formally accept the Democratic presidential nomination and deliver a speech outlining her political agenda.
The race between Harris and former President Donald Trump is currently very tight. According to polling data compiled by the U.S. election information website Real Clear Politics, as of Tuesday, Harris leads Trump by an average of 0.2 percentage point in national polls, though Trump still leads in several key swing states. ■