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CHICAGO — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has gone from a comparatively unknown Midwestern politician to accepting the nomination for the second-highest elected put up in the USA in simply two weeks. The marketing campaign has little time to introduce him to voters.

Walz’s speech on the Democratic Nationwide Conference on Wednesday in Chicago will play a big position in that effort. Listed below are 5 details to learn about him:

1. The Walz-Harris marketing campaign is leaning onerous into his days of instructing and training

Walz routinely factors again to his time within the classroom in speeches and public appearances. He has an extended instructing historical past in Minnesota and Nebraska forward of his time in elected workplace. Twenty-two of his former highschool college students from southern Minnesota turned out to the Minnesota Capitol final week to point out their help for his or her former instructor.

One of many former college students, Dan Clement, advised reporters Walz being on the ticket modified how he was planning to vote in November.

“Loads of the opposite stuff that I could not agree with, will get thrown out the window in the case of Coach Walz,” mentioned Clement, a self-identified third-party voter. “That man did lots for me in my life, and I owe him the help that he’s going to get from me.”

Walz credit a few of his former college students for encouraging him to first run for Congress in 2006.

Democrats hope these sorts of tales resonate with voters who may see a instructor or coach in Tim Walz that that they had in class — particularly within the essential “Blue Wall” states of Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan.

2. Walz is just not a local Minnesotan; he’s from Nebraska

Walz spent his early life in rural Nebraska. He was born in West Level and moved to Valentine earlier than graduating highschool in Butte. After graduating from Chadron State School, he taught in Alliance. All these cities are removed from the inhabitants facilities of Lincoln and Omaha.

Walz’s stump speech focuses on the “values” he says he picked up from rising up in Valentine and Butte.

“Energy comes from our values, values of working collectively, seeing previous variations, and at all times being prepared to be a neighbor to lend a serving to hand,” Walz mentioned throughout his first solo marketing campaign cease in Omaha over the weekend. “Now it is time for Vice President Harris and I, as we’re operating on these values, let’s take them to the White Home.”

The lone electoral vote in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District can cut up off from the remainder of the reliably Republican state. The electoral vote went to Democratic Presidents Joe Biden in 2020 and Barack Obama in 2008.

Walz moved to his spouse Gwen’s house state of Minnesota in 1996, the place the 2 taught in Mankato earlier than he ran for Congress.

His Midwestern household man persona has develop into a key a part of his picture for the marketing campaign, and a part of how Harris hopes to attraction to voters within the area.

3. Walz served within the Nationwide Guard, and his report has been a part of the marketing campaign

Walz joined the Nationwide Guard at age 17 and served 24 years, first in Nebraska then Minnesota. Throughout that point, he received referred to as as much as nationwide disasters and a deployment to the Arctic Circle in Norway. He accomplished his 20 years required for retirement in 2001, however then reenlisted after the assaults on Sept. 11. His solely wartime deployment was to Italy in 2003, backfilling troops that had been deploying to Afghanistan. So Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance, and lots of veterans on social media, took difficulty with Walz saying he’d carried weapons “in conflict” when speaking about gun management in a video shared by the Harris-Walz marketing campaign.

The Harris marketing campaign mentioned in an announcement: “In his 24 years of service, the Governor carried, fired and skilled others to make use of weapons of conflict innumerable instances. Governor Walz would by no means insult or undermine any American’s service to this nation — in actual fact, he thanks Senator Vance for placing his life on the road for our nation. It is the American manner.”

Vance, himself a veteran who didn’t see fight, has gone so far as to accuse Walz of “stolen valor.” Learn extra about Walz’ army report right here.

4. Walz had a reasonable voting report whereas serving in Congress, however grew to become extra progressive as governor

Walz defeated a longtime Republican in a largely rural district in southern Minnesota and was seen as a reasonable vote in Congress.

When he was first elected governor in 2018, Walz needed to frequently discover compromise between the state’s Republican-controlled Senate and the Democratic-controlled Home.

In 2022 when he was reelected, Democrats gained full management of state authorities in Minnesota, giving Walz the chance to signal many progressive priorities into legislation, together with offering paid household depart, legalizing leisure marijuana and enacting a number of gun restrictions. Walz signed a legislation enshrining abortion entry into Minnesota statutes following the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2023.

5. His critics level to his dealing with of 2020 riots, how he navigated the pandemic, and fraud in state authorities underneath his watch

Walz confronted criticism over how he responded within the days following the homicide of George Floyd in 2020. The criticism facilities on whether or not Walz deployed the Minnesota Nationwide Guard rapidly sufficient to quell the unrest that erupted after Floyd was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer. Walz has defended his actions, together with reforms taken up after the protests.

Republicans within the Minnesota legislature additionally blame Walz for current legislative audits which have proven hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in fraud in state authorities, together with what federal prosecutors name the largest pandemic fraud case within the nation. The audits have highlighted gaps in administrative oversight.

“This falls squarely on the shoulders of our governor,” Demuth mentioned. “He has received to take accountability, if these in his administration and the commissioners that he has hand chosen are usually not prepared to take accountability then he must.”

Walz has mentioned he accepts accountability for the failures however mentioned there wasn’t any malfeasance by the state.

NPR’s Quil Lawrence contributed to this report.