Editorials & Other Articles

Advocates for Shapiro and Kelly had pointed to their coming from battleground states, home to contests which will decide the election in November, while Walz comes from a state that has been solidly Democratic for decades.

But on Tuesday, Larry Sabato of the University of Virginia, a leading polling analyst, pointed to progressive doubts about one competitor to Walz when he said: “Yes, Governor Josh Shapiro could have brought a bigger payoff (19 electoral votes) but Governor Tim Walz fills the age-old bill for VP nominees: first, do no harm.”

Elsewhere, Matthew Dowd, a former Republican operative, saluted a “smart pic by VP Harris” that he said would work to her advantage in northern battleground states.

Walz, Dowd said, would “help the entire campaign effort especially in places like Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. As a native Michigander I can tell you Walz fits perfect in the Wolverine state.”