10 Facts About Tim Walz, Who Kamala Harris Chooses to Be Her Running Mate

By
Ryan Low
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The US Presidential Elections are coming and walls have entered the political mainstream as per usual.

Kamala Harris has a wall of her own (pun intended), after naming Minnesota governor Tim Walz as her running mate.

Instead of building a wall as Republican nominee Donald Trump desires, Walz, however, talks about investing in a “30-foot ladder factory”.

Who is Tim Walz?

Born in 6 April 1964 in Nebraska, Tim Walz is no stranger to the political scene. Although an endangered species as a rural Midwesterner campaigning as Democrat, the former congressman and 41st governor of Minnesota has been a participant in politics since 2004, where he volunteered for John Kerry’s presidential campaign.

Here are 10 more facts about him.

1. He was a former schoolteacher.

In 1989, Walz started off teaching in China with Worldteach, one of the first government-sanctioned groups of American educators to teach in Chinese high schools.

He returned to Nebraska after a year and continued teaching geography and coaching football. He met his wife, a fellow teacher, at work and coached the Mankato West High School football team to its first state championship in 1999.

Walz has been described as someone who brought “a lot of energy“. No Sleepy Tim insults expected here.

2. He was previously arrested.

In 1995, Walz was arrested for driving under the influence. He pled guilty to a reduced charge of reckless driving and his driver’s license was suspended for 90 days. He has since stopped drinking alcohol.

It seems that the incident has not deterred his love for cars – he continues to drive a vintage blue International Scout, which has been out of production since 1980.

3. He and his wife underwent fertility treatment.

Both of his two children were conceived via IVF and fertility treatment. It took them seven years of treatment to finally conceive.

4. He supports cannabis legalisation.

Walz advocated for the legalisation of cannabis as governor of Minnesota and on May 30, 2023, he signed into law House File 100 to legalize recreational cannabis use.

5. He is pro-LGBT.

Walz has a strong track record as an LGBT ally. When he was a teacher, he was appointed as faculty advisor of the first gay–straight alliance at Mankato West High School.

He has advocated against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, signed bills that support the LGBTQ community (including one banning conversion therapy), and received a 90% score from the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBT rights organization.

6. He was a former Command Sergeant Major.

Following the footsteps of his father, a Korean War veteran, Walz enlisted in the National Guard for 24 years. He eventually attained the rank of Command Sergeant Major and won the Army Commendation Medal and two Army Achievement Medals for his meritorious service.

Image: US Army

7. He named a highway after Prince.

Donning a purple shirt, Walz signed a bill renaming Truck Highway 5 from Eden Prairie to Chanhassen to Prince Rogers Nelson Memorial Highway with purple ink. The 7-time Grammy-winner Prince was a Minnesotan.

 

8. He was barred from a Bush rally.

Walz attended a Bush rally with his students in 2004 but the group ended up being interrogated and denied entrance by security because one of the students had a Kerry sticker.

9. He is a gun-owner and an avid supporter of gun rights.

Walz is a strong supporter of gun rights during his time as Congressman. He has been endorsed and funded by the NRA Political Victory Fund (NRA-PVF) on multiple occasions.

Walz is also a game hunter and introduced a “Governor’s Turkey Hunting Opener” to kick off the turkey hunting season in Minnesota. A similar event for the pheasant hunting season.

Image: Minnesota Department of Natural Resources

10. He is proud of his rural upbringing.

Walz was raised in Butte and described it as “a town of 400 — 24 kids in a class, 12 cousins, farming, those types of things”.

Despite its small size, he says “A town that small had services like that and had a public school with a government teacher that inspired me to be sitting where I’m at today. Those are real stories in small towns.”

With the Democrats struggling with rural voters, Walz believes his background will prove important in the upcoming electoral battle in understanding the bread-and-butter issues that they face – of changing economies, public education and affordable health insurance.

In the meantime, you can watch this video to know why Kamala Harris has been getting lots of attention from young voters:

Watch this for a complete summary of what REALLY happened to Qoo10, and why it's like a K-drama:

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Ryan Low