Georgia officials and political leaders are reacting to Vice President Kamala Harris announcing her running mate for the 2024 presidential election.
In an announcement on Tuesday, Harris revealed her selection of Minnesota Gov. and former U.S. House Rep. Tim Walz.
“As a governor, a coach, a teacher and a veteran, he’s delivered for working families like his,” Harris said on X. “It’s great to have him on the team.”
Reactions in support of and against Walz have poured in since the announcement and have mostly — with one exception — fallen along party lines.
U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia shared his approval of the Midwestern politician.
“I think that Gov. Walz is a very strong choice,” said Ossoff at a press conference at The King Center in Atlanta on Tuesday. “He is an accomplished governor, military veteran, looking forward to bringing him to Georgia. The excitement here in Georgia is palpable, and I believe the vice president will prevail here.”
U.S. Rep. and Democratic Party of Georgia Chair Nikema Williams shared her thoughts on Walz on her personal X account and in a lengthier statement through the DPG.
“Vice President Harris chose an ideal running mate to unite our country, reinforce her record for fighting for working families and help take Donald Trump to task,” she said. “The road to the White House runs directly through Georgia … and [Georgia Democrats are] ready to take the Harris-Walz ticket across the finish line in November.”
U.S. Rep Lucy McBath of Georgia echoed Williams’ statement.
“He will put the needs of everyday Americans above everything else,” said McBath in a statement on X. “I’m proud to support him as our Vice Presidential nominee. I’m ready to make sure they win this November.”
Other endorsements from Georgia Democratic leaders included State Sens. Josh McLaurin, Nikki Merritt and Nabilah Islam Parkes, who referred to the Harris-Walz team as “the administration America needs.”
Georgia Republicans, however, were less complimentary of Walz’s political credentials.
The Young Republicans of Georgia stated on X that since the Minnesota governor’s tenure in office, the state has become “a sanctuary state for children under 18 who wanted to get gender transition surgeries” and that “Minnesota murders are up 73%.”
In 2023, Walz issued an executive order that protects transgender patients’ ability to receive gender-affirming medical care, and he signed into law a measure that creates a legal sanctuary in Minnesota for children seeking such care. Gender-affirming medical care is supported by nearly every major medical and pediatric group in the U.S., and doctors rarely offer genital surgeries until adulthood.
Walz took office as governor in 2019. The homicide rate in Minnesota increased each year through 2021, according to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. That mirrors national trends during the COVID-19 pandemic. The homicide rate fell in Minnesota in 2022, and preliminary data shows it is poised to fall again in 2023. The state will announce official numbers later this year.
The Republican Party of Georgia referred to Walz in an X post as “the most radical, left wing Presidential ticket offered by a major party in American history.”
U.S. Rep. Mike Collins of Georgia said that the Democratic Party “caved to the mob” with their selection, while Georgia Lt. Gov. Burt Jones shared his contempt of Walz’ liberal views.
“He has been a stronger advocate for gender conversion than for law enforcement. He has abandoned Israel to appease progressive activists,” Jones stated on X. “He’ll fit right in with his running mate Kamala Harris … but he won’t play in Georgia.”
U.S. Rep. Rich McCormick of Georgia, a U.S. Marine and Navy veteran, criticized Walz on his military career. McCormick said on X Wednesday that “Georgia’s military community will find it rather repugnant that Walz opted to retire from the National Guard right when he found out his unit was headed to Iraq.”
Walz left the National Guard in 2005 to run for Congress and won a seat the following year, according to the Washington Post.
Former Georgia Lt. Gov Geoff Duncan, an anti-Trump Republican, expressed his excitement with having Walz aboard the campaign.
“We may not agree on everything but we do agree the future of this country should never depend on Donald Trump ever again.”
Duncan endorsed Harris last month, writing in an opinion column for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that she is “the best vehicle toward preventing another stained Trump presidency.”
Walz called it “the honor of a lifetime to join Kamala Harris.
“I’m all in,” he wrote on X. “Vice President Harris is showing us the politics of what’s possible … so, let’s get this done, folks!”
