Minnesota Democrats are coalescing around Vice President Kamala Harris as their favored presidential nominee after President Joe Biden announced Sunday he would not seek reelection.

Gov. Tim Walz and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, along with most Democratic members of Minnesota’s Congressional delegation and state party leadership, joined a swell of Democrats from across the U.S. backing Harris in the 24 hours following Biden’s announcement.

“I’ve known Vice President Kamala Harris for years and I’ve seen her strengthen national security, protect reproductive rights, and pass historic legislation,” Walz said on X, formerly Twitter, Monday morning. “As a prosecutor running against a convicted felon, no one is better qualified to unite our party and take on Donald Trump.”

Reps. Betty McCollum, Angie Craig and Ilhan Omar, and Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith all say they back Harris. Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party Chairman Ken Martin issued a statement in support of Harris on Sunday.

“President Biden’s decision to withdraw from the presidential race was difficult, but it was the right decision at the right time,” McCollum said in a Sunday statement, just two days after she had called on the president to end his campaign. “Now Democrats must unite behind Vice President Kamala Harris as our party’s nominee for President and focus on the work ahead — defeating Trump and winning in November.”

The 81-year-old Biden faced heavy pressure from high-profile Democrats to step down as concerns grew about his age following a poor performance in a June debate with Donald Trump, the Republican nominee and former president. By late last week, more than 30 Democratic members of Congress, including Minnesota’s Craig and McCollum, had called on Biden to suspend his campaign.

Rep. Dean Phillips, who in March ended the only serious challenge to Biden’s place on the Democratic ticket, said he believed Harris was a qualified replacement. In a social media post Sunday, however, Phillips called for a “brief, transparent, competitive” process for choosing the party’s nominee.

“Invite @KamalaHarris and the top three other vote getters to a series of four, televised town halls w/audiences of delegates before voting at the convention,” Phillips said on X.

While the Democratic party is rallying around Harris, the party won’t officially select its nominee for president until next month’s national convention in Chicago. Other Democrats seen as legitimate contenders for the presidency, such as Govs. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan and Gavin Newsom of California, also have backed Harris, limiting the number of potential challengers with a higher national political profile.

Veep Walz?

Minnesota’s governor has been raising his own national profile as a surrogate for Biden on cable news programs, raising speculation about his ambitions beyond Minnesota.

Walz, who chairs the Democratic Governors Association, attended a meeting at the White House earlier this month after Biden’s poor debate performance led to calls for the president to suspend his campaign and allow another Democrat to step forward.

At the time, Walz said he believed Biden was “fit for office.” He never directly called for Biden to end his campaign.

In a Monday interview with Minnesota Public Radio, Walz said he had spoken with Harris over the weekend and wouldn’t necessarily rule out being her running mate.

McCollum, as she called for Biden on Friday to step aside and allow Harris to be the presidential nominee, suggested delegates to the Democratic National Convention back Walz as Harris’ running mate.

Walz has built up his national profile with his leadership positions and media appearances, but political observers see more upside in Harris choosing a running mate from a swing state. Minnesota has favored the Democrat in the last 12 presidential elections, so a Harris-led ticket likely wouldn’t need a vice-presidential bump in the state to win the presidency.

Related Articles

Amy Klobuchar, Tina Smith, Angie Craig react to Biden’s exit

U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum joins calls for Biden to drop out of presidential race

Royce White, Joe Fraser present contrasting conservative visions in first Senate debate

Minnesota’s minimum age of 21 to carry guns unconstitutional, appeals court rules

Joe Soucheray: Should Minnesotans take some measure of pride in our governor’s blossoming national profile?