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The ascending rise of current Vice President Kamala Harris as the front-running Democratic nominee in the upcoming 2024 presidential election is in full swing after only just beginning a few weeks ago.
Things now appear to be kicking off with even more brevity after Harris chose earlier today (August 6) to announce her official pick for Vice President to be Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.
RELATED: Kamala Harris Announces Walz For VP Running Mate
Her decorated Instagram caption honoring the great work of Walz (see above) only scratches the surface to what makes him such a fitting candidate. Take a look below at a brief bio on Kamala’s future right-hand-man below, via USA Today:
“Walz, 60, brings political acuity, suburban-and-rural appeal and progressive patriotism to a competition where all three criteria are seen as helpful for Democrats to clinch a 2024 win against the Republican ticket of former President Donald Trump and Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio.
A military veteran, former public school teacher and six-term congressman, Walz is now serving the sixth year of his eight-year stint as governor of the North Star State.
He has been an ardent supporter of President Joe Biden and was a surrogate for his reelection campaign. After the president’s disastrous debate performance in June, Walz often took to the airwaves to defend Biden and boast about the administration’s accomplishments, even in the face of Democratic doubts.”
…Harris-Walz sure does have a ring to it, don’t you think?
Keep scrolling for a closer look at just a handful of the decorated credentials of Gov. Tim Walz, which you’ll find makes him more than suitable of a candidate to be the running mate for Kamala Harris in her 2024 electoral run for President of the United States:
1. A Passion For Academics
His early beginnings in native Minnesota saw Walz teaching social studies and coached football at Mankato West High School. He even brought the school its first of four state championships during the 1999 season.
2. A True LGBTQ+ Ally
In addition to helping Mankato West High School create its first gay-straight alliance during his time as coach in the ’90s, Walz has also dedicated an extensive amount of his political career to LGBTQ+ rights. Just last year he signed into law a ban on LGBTQ+ conversion practices in Minnesota, and is one of the key figures that helped make the state become known as a “LGBTQ+ refuge.”
3. A Seasoned Vet
Serving in the Army National Guard, Walz dedicated 24 years before his honorific retirement in 2005 as one of the military’s highest enlisted ranks in the form of Command Sergeant Major for a field artillery battalion.
4. A Choice Even Conservatives Can Agree With
Even as a representative for the Democratic Party, Walz has surprisingly had his fair share of luck in coming out on top even when the odds are on the side of the Republican Party. His first race for Congress in 2006 saw him win in a rural district against six-term GOP Rep. Gil Gutknecht.
5. A Titian Of Anti-Gun Policies
Being a gun owner that grew up hunting, not to mention his aforementioned 24 years serving in the Army National Guard, made Walz a favored political head in the eyes of the NRA. However, his newfound stance on tighter gun control measures proves that he’s not afraid to change for the better regardless of being perceived as a “political chameleon.”
6. A People’s Champ That Understands The Struggle
In VP Harris’ announcement of Walz as her running mate, one of her key points of reasoning behind the decision was his upbringing in a family supported by Social Security survivor benefit checks. You can see how that translates in his policies with his fight to rid Social Security tax for a sizable number of Minnesotans who rightfully qualify.
7. An Advocate For Abortion Rights
Back in January 2023, Gov. Walz signed a bill that gave Minnesota the right to abortion and other reproductive health care, even making sure the state’s existing protections remain intact regardless of who takes office in the future.
8. A “Canna-Positive” Candidate
In one his more popular rulings, Walz signed a bill back in May 2023 to legalize marijuana for recreational use in adults 21 and over. At the time he referred to it as “a long journey with a lot of folks involved.”
9. An Ally For Gender-Affirmation
In April of 2023, the legislation Walz signed also stated that Minnesota won’t cooperate with attempts to prosecute out-of-state patients seeking gender-affirming procedures and treatment.
10. A Man From (And For!) Minnesota
Above all, and something you’ll notice from many of the aforementioned accolades, Walz has gone above and beyond to assure the state of Minnesota is only going up from here. From providing universal free school meals for students and making moves to get Minnesota 100% clean electricity by 2040, his goal of making it the “best state in the country to raise a family” could very well extend to the nation.