“A Great Sign for Workers” — Minnesota Governor Tim Walz Named Vice Presidential Nominee

“The rest of the country is about to find out what working Minnesotans have known for years – Tim Walz is one of us who fights for working people like us every single day.”  – Bernie Bernham, President of Minnesota AFL-CIO

Minnesota was abuzz with excitement yesterday at the news that our Governor, Tim Walz, has been selected as Vice President Kamala Harris’s running mate. Walz was elected governor in 2018 and reelected in 2022. He drew the attention of the Harris campaign through his plainspoken critiques of Donald Trump and JD Vance, as well as his pre-gubernatorial background as a schoolteacher, a veteran, and a Democratic Congressman elected and then reelected from a conservative-leaning district. But we at Workers Confluence are most excited about the Walz pick because it shines a spotlight on Minnesota and the way the People’s work gets done here. 

Having been a union member himself in his teaching days, Governor Walz has earned a reputation as a friend to working people and a believer in collective bargaining. Last September he even visited a picket line outside a Stellantis factory in Plymouth, Minnesota in support of striking members of the United Auto Workers. The second Walz term has included the 2023 “Minnesota Miracle 2.0” legislative session* which produced a thick stack of new worker-friendly laws for the governor to sign, including statewide paid sick days and paid family leave, higher pay for childcare teachers, wage and safety protections for construction and warehouse workers, and many more.

But none of these victories were won by one heroic leader – as Governor Walz himself would probably be the first to say. As stated in this previous Confluence post, it was achieved through years of organizing and advocacy, years of coalition-building and joint campaigning from Minnesota’s labor and community organizations (many of whom are Confluence grantees or labor partners). These groups, speaking on behalf of Minnesota’s workers, families, and marginalized communities, have found a willing partner in Governor Walz, and the resulting legislation is already having a positive impact.

Regardless of the outcome of the Presidential election, the Walz VP selection shines a spotlight on what can be accomplished when elected leaders are engaged with and accountable to a deeply connected ecosystem of people’s organizations, and it provides an opportunity for the rest of the nation to learn from  Minnesota’s example.

Further reading:

Tim Walz has a reputation for “giving a damn about workers.” (slate.com)

Labor unions love Kamala Harris’ choice of Tim Walz as running mate : NPR

Tim Walz Is a Great Sign for Workers (msn.com)

*The original Minnesota Miracle took place in 1971 and replaced the old system of self-funded school districts with a new system designed to eliminate the disparities between poor and wealthy districts, so that all Minnesota children can have equal access to a quality education. From MNopedia.org: “The reforms came to be known as the Minnesota Miracle: a set of laws comprising the tax changes as well as the Minnesota Fiscal Disparities Act of 1971, which set up a tax-base-sharing program. In his reelection bid three years later, Governor Wendell Anderson carried all eighty-seven of Minnesota’s counties, a feat not accomplished before or since.”