Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, in his first public remarks since the election, promised to find common ground with those who voted for the Republican ticket, while also sticking to the principles that have guided him while governor.
Walz, who isn’t term-limited, could run for a third term in two years, though he gave no indication either way. But he vowed to make sure his state would continue to protect reproductive rights and unions, work to mitigate climate change and prevent school shootings, and be a welcoming place for immigrants, among other goals.
“It’s hard to lose,” Walz told supporters at a high school in Eagan, Minnesota. “It’s hard to understand how so many of our fellow citizens—people Democrats have long fought to help—wound up choosing the path they did. And it’s hard to reckon with what that path looks like over the next four years.”
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Walz also detailed some of what he learned from his travels across the country since his selection as Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate. Everyone wants the same basic things, he said: “meaningful work, safe neighborhoods, good schools, affordable health care,” in addition to security, freedom, and opportunity.
“That freedom is supposed to be everybody’s birthright, no matter how much money you make or where your family came from,” he explained, “no matter who you love or how you pray or what you think about the issues of the day.”
Addressing the incoming Trump administration, Walz said what has been accomplished in Minnesota—cutting taxes for the working class, making breakfast and lunch free for public school children, and instituting paid family and medical leave—must be protected.
“We know what‘s coming down the pike,” he said, “and we’re going to have to be ready to defend the process in Minnesota.”
“The moment they try and bring a hateful agenda into this state, I’m going to stand ready to fight,” Walz said. “Minnesota always has, and always will, be there to provide shelter from the storm.”
