Minnesota governor Walz to be Harris's running mate

The vice-president touted Tim Walz's work for 'middle-class families' in social media post as she announced her selection

- ERIC GARCIA, ANDREW FEINBERG

US vice-president Kamala Harris has chosen Minnesota governor Tim Walz to be her running mate, touting the work he’s done for “middle-class families” and his “deep commitment” to his own wife and children.

“One of the things that stood out to me about Tim is how his convictions on fighting for middle-class families run deep. It’s personal,” she wrote in an Instagram post announcing the decision. “He worked with Republicans to pass infrastructure investments. He cut taxes for working families. He passed a law to provide paid family and medical leave to Minnesotan families.”

She added: “We are going to build a great partnership. We are going to build a great team. We are going to win this election.”

Ms Harris’s announcement comes with a little more than a week to go until the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. The pair held a rally in Philadelphia last night before they begin a tour through swing states.

Ms Harris told the audience: “I set out to find a partner who can help build this brighter future. A leader who will help unite our nation and move us forward. A fighter for the middle class. A patriot, who believes as I do, in the extraordinary promise of America.”

Governor Walz, when he spoke, also praised Ms Harris for bringing positivity to national politics. “Thank you for bringing back the joy,” he told the audience, before he trashed his “creepy” Republican opposite JD Vance and declared that he “could not wait to debate him”.

Governor Walz, a former history teacher, high-school football coach, congressman and two-term governor, has been a favourite of the online left for his passing of popular progressive policies and for starting the trend for calling Republican politicians “weird”. Similarly, he has shown a willingness to aggressively attack former president Donald Trump and his running mate, Republican senator JD Vance.