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2024 ElectionDemocratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris has officially announced her vice president pick: Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
@kamalaharris / Via Instagram: @kamalaharris
Since you might be gathering intel on who Walz is, including his background and achievements, here are some fast facts to know:
1. Timothy James Walz was born on April 6, 1964, in West Point, Nebraska, to Darlene Rose and James F. Walz. His father, a public school administrator, died of lung cancer when Tim was 19. He has spoken out about how Social Security survivor benefit checks kept his family afloat after his father's death.
Tim Walz / Via Facebook: govwalz
2. Walz enlisted in the Army National Guard at age 17 in 1981 and served in the volunteer force for 24 years. In 1989, he was named Nebraska Citizen-Soldier of the Year. He's a decorated veteran, earning an Army Commendation Medaland twoArmy Achievement Medals.
Today marks the 41st anniversary of raising my right hand to serve in the National Guard – one of the best decisions I ever made.
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) April 8, 2022
To all our service members: Thank you for your continued sacrifice for our state and nation. pic.twitter.com/zN1ml1Cwd0
@GovTimWalz / Via Twitter: @GovTimWalz
3. In 1989, Walz earned a Bachelor of Science in social science education from Chadron State College. He earned his Masters of Science in educational leadership from Minnesota State University, Mankato, in 2001. Walz often credits the GI Bill with helping him attend college.
Tasos Katopodis / Getty Images
4. After receiving his bachelor's degree, Walz spent a year teaching in China through a Harvard exchange program. Upon returning, he took a job teaching in Nebraska and met his wife, another fellow teacher, Gwen Whipple. They married in 1994 and moved to Minnesota, Gwen's home state, in 1996.
Today, Gwen and I are celebrating our wedding anniversary! In 1994, on this day, we were surrounded by our family and dear friends. Today, we remain most grateful for them and each other! pic.twitter.com/esbnuuUlu7
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) June 4, 2022
@GovTimWalz / Via Twitter: @GovTimWalz
He reportedly still speaks some Mandarin.
5. In Minnesota, Walz worked as a geography teacher and football coach at Mankato West High School. He coached the football team to its first state championship in 1999. He was also the faculty advisor for the first gay-straight alliance at the high school.
@KFile / Via x.com
He told the Star Tribune that at the time — three years after Bill Clinton signed a law forbidding same-sex marriage— it was important to have "the football coach, who was the soldier and was straight and was married," as the faculty advisor.
6. His former students have spoken out in support of him.
just a great big hell yes to all of this. I was a slacker who didn’t fit in or like the place I grew up very much. my locker was outside of his room senior year. he checked in on me. he recommended books. he encouraged me. he treated my thoughts as valuable. Mr. Walz was the best https://t.co/R6qebTVWjY
— SM (@SmMcCllgh) August 6, 2024
@Hobbs_Duluth / Via Twitter: @SmMcCllgh
7. Walz says he got involved in politics after allegedly being denied entry to a George W. Bush speech because the students he brought had previously volunteered for the democratic party. "My students, regardless of political party, deserved to witness the historical moment of a sitting president coming to our city," he wrote. "It was at this moment I decided to run for office."
@Tim_Walz / Via x.com
8. Walz first ran for Congress in 2006 in a Republican-leaning, largely rural district of southern Minnesota and won in an upset against the incumbent Republican Gil Gutknecht. He served six terms in the US House before successfully running for governor of Minnesota in 2018.
Stephen Maturen / Getty Images
Walz was also thehighest-rankingenlisted soldier ever to serve in the US House.
9. Walz has been outspoken about reproductive healthcare. He signed a broad abortion rights bill into law that made Minnesota the first state to codify abortion rights after Roe was overturned. He's also spoken in support of fertility treatments like IVF. He and his wife went through seven years of fertility treatments before having their daughter in 2001, whom they named Hope in honor of their fertility fight.
Tim Walz / Via Facebook: govwalz
"My oldest daughter's name is Hope, and that's because my wife and I spent seven years trying to get pregnant and needed fertility treatments, things like IVF, things that they would ban," Walz said on a fundraising call this week. Walz and his wife have two children, Hope, 23, and Gus, 17.
10. Walz is a hunter and gun owner and was even once endorsed by the NRA, but his views on guns have since evolved. This is in part because of his daughter Hope, who asked him to do something about gun violence after the Parkland shooting. Since then, he's spoken out in favor of an assault weapons ban andsigned laws for stricter gun control measures.
— Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) July 27, 2024It’s true. I’m a veteran, a hunter, and a gun owner. But I’m also a dad. And for many years, I was a teacher.
I know basic gun safety isn’t a threat to my rights. It’s about keeping our kids safe.
I had an A rating from the NRA. Now I get straight F's. And I sleep just fine. https://t.co/R3ZX4A35GB
@Tim_Walz / Via Twitter: @Tim_Walz
"As a veteran, gun owner, hunter, and dad, I know basic gun safety isn't a threat to the Second Amendment. It's about keeping our kids safe," Walz said in a press release after signing gun safety measures into law in Minnesota.
11. Despite historically being more moderate in the House, some have called Walz one of the most progressive picks for VP because of the policies and laws he's enacted as governor.Last year, Walz signed into law free breakfast and lunch for all Minnesota students.
I’ve seen the popular image of Tim Walz being hugged by the kids when signing the bill for free breakfast and lunch at schools, but this is my first time seeing the video and it’s very sweet.pic.twitter.com/PXEToDoG8v
— Erick Fernandez (@ErickFernandez) August 6, 2024
@ErickFernandez / Via Twitter: @ErickFernandez
To the critics who would argue against free lunches or call him a "big government liberal," Walzsaidjokingly, "What a monster.Kids are eating and having full bellies so they can go learn, and women are making their own healthcare decisions."
12. Walz instituted a paid medical and family leave act that allows Minnesota workers up to 12 weeks a year off with partial pay to care for a newborn or a sick family member. He also signed legislation that provides funding for free tuition at public colleges for students whose families earn less than $80,000 a year.
@MorePerfectUS / Via x.com
13. He's also legalized recreational marijuana and expanded protections for LGBTQ+ people, including access to gender-affirming care.
Star Tribune via Getty Images
14. And he'sbeen an advocate for tackling climate change. In 2023, he signed a bill into law that requires Minnesota utilities to get 100% of their electricity from carbon-free sources by 2040.
We’ve struck a blow against climate change by putting Minnesota on a pathway to 100% clean energy by 2040.
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) April 4, 2024
Now we’re ready to leverage Inflation Reduction Actfunding to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and keep Minnesota a great place to raise a family for generations to come.
15. Walz is credited with starting the recent"campaign of weird"against Donald Trump, J.D. Vance, and the Republican party. He's been calling them "weird" since at least February and had a bit of a viral moment after going on MSNBC.
I’m telling you: these guys are weird. pic.twitter.com/fvNRNf7T7T
— Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) July 24, 2024
MSNBC / Via Twitter: @Tim_Walz
Walz said"weird" works because it strips Trump of having too much credit and power. "I think one of the things is [to] just ratchet down some of the scariness and just name it what it is," he told CNN. "That is weird behavior. And I don't think you call it anything else. It is simply what we're observing."
17. Now, his preferred drink of choiceisDiet Mountain Dew.
Tim Walz is also a huge Diet Mountain Dew fan. pic.twitter.com/p7S714goy1
— Robert Downen (@RobertDownen_) August 5, 2024
@GovTimWalz / @RobertDownen_ / Via Twitter: @RobertDownen_
People are already calling for a Dew-off with J.D. Vance (who previously suggested in a bad joke that Democrats would call Diet Mountain Dew racist).
18. And lastly, he's a rescue cat dad...
@mngovernor / Via Instagram: @mngovernor
19. ...and a rescue dog dad!
@mngovernor / Via Instagram: @mngovernor
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