What would happen if Gov. Tim Walz became Vice President Kamala Harris' running mate?
MINNEAPOLIS — Vice President Kamala Harris, the likely Democratic nominee following President Biden's departure from the race, is vetting Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as a potential running mate.
But what would happen in Minnesota if he gets selected and becomes a heartbeat away from the presidency?
The state constitution says in the event of a vacancy, Lieutenant Gov. Peggy Flanagan would become governor, and the president of the state Senate, Sen. Bobby Joe Champion, would elevate to lieutenant governor.
Larry Jacobs, director of the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance at the University of Minnesota, said during the campaign there would unlikely be any formal transition of power but Walz would crisscross the country to make the case to voters. The governor is in the middle of his second four-year term.
"There's two roles [for the vice presidential nominee]. One is governing after the election, and the other is before the election trying to get the ticket over the hurdle," Jacobs said.
"Typically, that second position is the attack dog. So I think we'd see Tim Walz really going after the Trump-Vance ticket, and it'd probably be a harsher tone than what we've seen here in Minnesota in his everyday conduct and he'd really be counted on to win the key states in the Upper Midwest," he added.
Walz has already been touting the Harris campaign on national news with several appearances just this week—and drawing a contrast between Democrats and former president Trump. When asked directly Tuesday if he was being considered for the VP slot, or wanted the job, he declined to answer. Previously, he stood by Mr. Biden, who dropped out of the race Sunday.
Minnesota has produced two vice presidents in U.S. history: Hubert Humphrey and Walter Mondale. Jacobs said Mondale transformed the office into how Americans know it to be today — one where the vice president is a critical adviser and can take the lead on issues for the president.
In 2008, Sen. John McCain considered then-Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty to be his running mate for the GOP ticket. Ultimately he fell just short, as McCain chose another governor, Sarah Palin, instead.
Brian McClung, deputy chief of staff for Pawlenty at the time, said the process took a while—far longer than what will be a two-week window for Harris to choose someone for the role. A panel advising the process of the Democratic National Convention voted this week for a virtual roll call vote locking up the nomination by August 7, before the in-person convention begins on August 19.
"That was the culmination of weeks, if not months of background checks, vetting, going through everything the governor had ever said, executive orders, every bill he signed, every bill he vetoed. And so it was really an extensive process that goes on in a VP selection," McClung recalled of the vetting process.
He said wasn't surprised to learn that Harris is considering Walz for the job, noting that he is a governor of a Midwestern state when the region is important on the path to the White House.
"This is Minnesota, we love to be part of the veepstakes," McClung joked. "Minnesota really is a state that is known in a bipartisan way for good governance. And so I think we have a tradition and history of being leaders in public policy, of being a state where people take an active role and care about what's happening. And so it's not a surprise to me to see that."
Trump and his running mate Sen. JD Vance will hold a campaign rally in St. Cloud on Saturday; Walz will be part of a Harris campaign event ahead of that visit on the same day.