Last week at the DNC, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz accepted his party’s nomination to be their candidate for vice president. While he pitched himself as a moderate Midwesterner, conservatives should be ecstatic over this choice. Walz’s radical policies mark Kamala as an even more polarizing figure and hurt her chances to win swing states. 

I was born and raised in the Midwest, and lived just outside Minneapolis during the George Floyd riots, so I got a firsthand look at Tim Walz’s governing tactics. It’s an understatement to say that he does not align with Harris’ image as a law-and-order prosecutor. Walz took a hands-off approach to the violence that followed the death of George Floyd, and did not send in the National Guard until a full day after Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey requested them on the evening of May 27th. Worse, the National Guard waited to restore order until early on the morning of May 30th, 2020, after the third straight night of violence had taken place. In all, these riots resulted in roughly $2 billion in damages. When it comes to swing states, Kamala cannot expect Walz’s radical policies to help.

Transgender policy is another issue on which Walz takes a radical approach. Last April, he signed a bill turning Minnesota into a sanctuary state for transgender kids. Not only does the law legalize such procedures for minors, but it requires that the state of Minnesota block any individuals who would return children who are fleeing states where these types of medical procedures are illegal. Polls show that Americans overwhelmingly oppose puberty blocker use on children. This law again demonstrates Walz to be on the fringes of what the American public supports. 

Candidates need to appear moderate in swing states like Wisconsin and Pennsylvania to appeal to the broadest spectrum of voters. By picking someone so radical on transgender policies, Harris loses any hope of gaining moderate conservatives. Republicans can cast the Harris-Walz ticket as being on the most radical end of an unpopular issue. 

If Harris had picked Josh Shapiro as her running mate, her ticket would have someone who has high approval ratings in a swing state with 20 electoral votes. Had she chosen Mark Kelly, the same would be true in a state with 11 electoral votes. With Walz, Harris chose someone from a state with 10 electoral votes but is not a swing state at all. In fact, no Republican has won the state of Minnesota since Richard Nixon in 1972.  

Elections are won by running toward the center and appealing to moderates. Tim Walz does neither. In this regard, Tim Walz is doing Kamala Harris no favors in her matchup with Donald Trump. While Walz may energize some on the radical Left, a contentious election victory relies on winning over moderates in swing states. Even in his home state of Minnesota, where local pride is a cultural feature, the only conservatives who will celebrate his addition to the national ticket will be those who hope to see Harris fall. 

Matt Cookson works in the supply chain for a US Defense Contractor. His commentary has appeared in Providence Magazine, China Source, and with the Idaho Freedom Foundation. You can follow him on X @MattCookson95. 

Image: Lorie Shaull