So while he may “help” with Dem voters, so does Shapiro. I don’t see a parallel with Tester because, to my knowledge, Walz doesn’t win Republican votes. Walz wins the same MN counties all Dems do. He doesn’t carry red counties. See this map from the 22 election. https://www.politico.com/2022-election/results/minnesota/statewide-offices/

The swing area on that map is the arrowhead. In years the dems win, the arrowhead goes blue, in years the GOP wins, the arrowhead goes red. Walz carrying the arrowhead is probably the best argument for him, but MN is unlikely to go to Trump either way.

I think Shapiro could win in a number of states, definitely. But Walz has qualities and support that many see more positively. All the candidates are good, incl. Cooper and Brashear. We'll know the choice soon enough.

He’s my governor, and I like him. Whomever Harris chooses is fine with me.

The post at the link below excerpts a recent New York Magazine article citing the work of two political scientists who’ve thoroughly researched the subject:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100219284836

Is that Walz doesn't carry voters that other Dems don't. You think Walz has appeal outside of typical Democratic constituencies, but that has yet to be shown.

My view of Walz's rural prowess is based primarily on learning about his tenure in the 1st Congressional District, where he beat a Republican incumbent and held on to the seat for a decade, in a district that reverted to Republican representation when he left Congress in 2019 to run for governor.

In statewide races since then, it’s difficult to compare apples to apples. Walz’s appeal would seem to be pretty different from that of AG Keith Ellison, and Steve Simon’s opponent for Sec. of State in 2022 was the election denier Kim Crockett, so Fear Of The Crazy may have inspired some crossover votes for him (my uninformed armchair analysis). In Pennsylvania, Shapiro in 2022 did well around the state, although his opponent was Jan. 6 insurrectionist Doug Mastriano, who fortunately turned out to be a beatable foe who was apparently radioactive to many in the Republican establishment. (https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2022-election/uphill-slog-gop-republicans-start-fleeing-mastriano-shapiro-pa-rcna37018)

On the Ezra Klein Show podcast (https://pod.link/1548604447) the other day, Walz admitted that Minnesota is more politically polarized today than when he was first elected to Congress, so it could be that the path to Dems winning statewide is now similar to other states (such as my home state of Georgia), where sheer numbers in metro Atlanta and other large-ish cities, plus (in the case of Georgia) turnout in majority Black counties in the “Black Belt” region, put Biden-Harris over the top in 2020.

Whoever gets the VP nod, I hope the ticket will be able to move beyond that formula somewhat, because a) it’s always better if you get buy-in from various constituencies and b) in a close statewide race, “losing by less” in a bunch of rural counties can help boost the numbers needed for victory.

MI
WI
PA
Georgia
AZ
NV

Especially with his union cred & gutturally authentic common sense appeal, I see Walz sweeping the Great Lakes as handily as Shapiro and PA for the same reason. His rhetorical mortar doesn’t just build coalitions, but momentum to turn out the vote in all the critical states. He & Buttigieg are unique political talents with star potential. Not a dig at Shapiro that he’s isn’t. Just like with Harris, Walz is the solution America needs at this moment in history but doesn’t deserve.

I may lose my governor, Peggy Flanagan is great but we still need Governor Walz in Minnesota.

damnn hope u get through it

I love my Governor Josh Shapiro and I want him to stay here in Pennsylvania. When we elected him just 2 years ago, we never considered that he might leave us for the national stage this soon. Let him finish out his first term as governor, let him get re-elected in 2026, and then steal him away from us after that.

Here in Pennsylvania what kept our last 3 or 4 elections on the straight-and-narrow path was the guiding hand and vigilance of our former Attorney General Josh Shapiro. That's been no small feat because the weaselly Repukes are advised by some of the worst cheats and election thieves in the country. They'd LOVE to see Josh chosen for the Dem ticket because it means he'd no longer be watching them while they try to pull their nasty election shit in October-November-December. It's exactly what they want.

We have such a deep bench in the Democratic Party. I will vote BLUE no matter who Kamala chooses as her running mate. But I really hope it's not Gov. Shapiro!

They all bring multiple qualities to the table which will help, especially given the trash they are running against.

I do think Shapiro is a bonus when it comes to Pennsylvania, but she's going to carry the Keystone state anyway. Pennsylvania always gets a lot of media attention because it has a lot of electoral votes, is in the Northeast and helps the media ratings. Democrats have had solid support there since the fiasco in 2016 of low turnout, and the Stein vote that cost Hillary the election. It's increased, not decreased. Harris will win it by somewhere between 4 and 6 points.

Shapiro brings a sharp minded, articulate, sensible voice along with him who would bury J.D. Vance in a debate, and who can explain, in layman's terms, things voters can understand. Walz brings his expertise and understanding of governing in the midwest, a microcosm of the rest of the country. Buttigieg is also the articulate explainer who doesn't let the narrative get away from him. Beshear is a masterful politician who has maintained popularity in a red state and his asset may be in talking enough red state voters into voting for Harris in places like Ohio and North Carolina. I like Mark Kelly a lot, the senator from my home state, but I think he does more for us in the Senate at this point, and they need to send Kari Lake packing in Arizona and he's teamed up with Ruben Gallego to do it.

The bottom line is that this is a critical decision but they're all good choices with good reasons behind them and none of them will hurt this effort at all. We need to win and we need to get the House and keep the Senate, and I think that's going to happen.

I agree with your take. It’s amazing that we have gone from scanning Zillow for homes in Denmark* just a couple of weeks ago to optimism and energy today.

* Kidding, of course. Mostly.