What is the history of Minnesotans on the presidential ticket?
MINNEAPOLIS — Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota will join Kamala Harris as her running mate on the presidential ticket.
Minnesotans are no newcomers to the vice presidency: Hubert Humphrey and Walter Mondale both successfully made it to the White House.
Hubert Humphrey was the first. A South Dakota pharmacist by trade, he eventually moved to Minnesota and became the mayor of Minneapolis in 1945, a post he held for three years before he served as U.S. Senator.
He rose in the ranks, passing legislation on food stamps, civil rights, and the Peace Corps and eventually became the Senate Majority Whip. He joined Lyndon B. Johnson's presidential run for what was a landslide victory for the Democrats in 1964.
When Johnson pulled out of the presidential race in 1968, Humphrey decided to run for the presidency himself.
He was challenged by Sen. Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy of New York, both of whom were staunchly anti-war. However, after Kennedy was assassinated after the California primary, Humphrey secured enough delegates to become the Democratic nominee.
However, Humphrey was narrowly defeated by Richard Nixon, largely because of his dedication to Johnson's Vietnam War policies, according to the Minnesota Historical Society. Though he tried to make a return in 1972, he lost the Democratic nomination to South Dakota Sen. George McGovern.
Mondale, on the other hand, is largely credited with transforming the role of the vice president to extend beyond a ceremonial position, the historical society says.
The southern Minnesota native rose to prominence in the DFL Party, serving as the attorney general and then as U.S. Senator when Humphrey vacated the seat. During his time he pushed to pass the Fair Housing Act and supported legislation on child care, poverty reform and public health care.
Jimmy Carter tapped him as vice president largely to balance out his own position as a Southern newcomer with an experienced Northern political figure, according to the historical society. After meeting with Carter, he submitted an 11-page memo outlining how he would transform the role.
He was given unprecedented access to the president and regarded as an advisor and liaison. Since Mondale's tenure, every single vice president has had an office in the West Wing, which was not the case previously.
After Carter lost reelection in 1980, Mondale decided to run at the top of the ticket in 1984 and faced off against the incumbent, Ronald Reagan. He made a historic decision to name Geraldine Ferraro, a representative from New York, to be his running mate, making her the first female vice presidential nominee to represent a major American political party. After his unsuccessful bid, he returned to work as a lawyer in Minneapolis.
Other Minnesotans in recent years have pursued both the presidency and the vice presidency: Dean Phillips challenged President Joe Biden earlier this year, arguing there was a need within the Democratic Party for generational change.
Before him, Sen. Amy Klobuchar kicked off her 2020 campaign in the middle of a blizzard, but dropped out hours before Super Tuesday to support Mr. Biden.
Tim Pawlenty, the former governor of Minnesota, was nearly chosen as John McCain's running mate in 2008 and Mitt Romney's in 2012. Michelle Bachmann, who served Minnesota's 6th Congressional District at the time, also made a run at the presidency that same year, but lost the nomination to Romney.
