Tim Walz

Tim Walz
Walz in 2024
41st Governor of Minnesota
Incumbent
Assumed office January 7, 2019
Lieutenant	Peggy Flanagan
Preceded by	Mark Dayton
Ranking Member of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee
In office January 3, 2017 – January 3, 2019
Preceded by	Mark Takano (acting)
Succeeded by	Phil Roe
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Minnesota's 1st district
In office January 3, 2007 – January 3, 2019
Preceded by	Gil Gutknecht
Succeeded by	Jim Hagedorn
Personal details
Born	Timothy James Walz (1964-04-06) April 6, 1964 (age 60) West Point, Nebraska, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Gwen Whipple ​ (m. 1994)​
Children	2
Education	Chadron State College (BS) Minnesota State University, Mankato (MS)
Signature
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Army Nebraska Army National Guard Minnesota Army National Guard
Years of service	1981–2005
Rank	Command Sergeant Major
Unit	1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery Regiment[1]
Awards	Army Commendation Medal Army Achievement Medal
Walz's voice Walz ahead of oral arguments in the Supreme Court Janus v. AFSCME case. Recorded February 26, 2018

Timothy James Walz (/wɔːlz/ (listen) WAWLZ; born April 6, 1964) is an American politician, former teacher and retired U.S. Army non-commissioned officer. Since 2019, he has been serving as the 41st governor of Minnesota. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party, he was the U.S. representative for Minnesota's 1st congressional district from 2007 to 2019. Walz was also the Democratic vice presidential nominee in the 2024 presidential election.

Before entering politics, Walz was a history teacher in Nebraska and Minnesota. He was part of the National Guard and took part of Operation Enduring Freedom in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. He was to re-elected to U.S. congress five times before resigning after being elected governor. His political views have been seen as progressive.^[2]

During his first term as governor of Minnesota, Walz was in charge of the state's response to the George Floyd protests and COVID-19 pandemic. In his second term, he signed many laws into effect that gave paid time off, made cannabis legal, increased spending on infrastructure and environmental issues, codifying abortion rights, universal free school meals, and universal gun background checks.^[3]

In July 2024, after President Joe Biden announced he would be ending his re-election campaign, Walz was seen as a possible running mate pick for Kamala Harris's presidential campaign. In early August 2024, Harris announced she had picked Walz as her running mate.

1. ↑ Williams, Linsey (2020). "Once in the Guard, always ready to serve". Minnesota National Guard. United States Army. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
2. ↑ "How could Tim Walz's political record help and hurt Harris?". The Guardian. August 6, 2024. Retrieved August 6, 2024.
3. ↑ Cite error: The named reference :0 was used but no text was provided for refs named (see the help page).