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Vice President Kamala Harris selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate in August, capping the Midwestern Democrat’s short but swift ascent from a relative unknown to a leading driver of the Democratic attacks on Donald Trump and the MAGA agenda.

Before Walz was elected governor in 2018, he served 12 years in Congress, representing a conservative-leaning rural district that, both before and after his tenure, has been mostly dominated by Republicans.

Walz, 60, is also a former high school teacher and football coach who served in the Army National Guard.

A baby Tim Walz is held by his father, James. The future Minnesota governor was born on April 6, 1964, in West Point, Nebraska.

Family Photo

Walz poses for a photo in 1981 during basic training for the Army National Guard. In 1989, he graduated from Chadron State College in Nebraska, majoring in social science education. He received a master’s degree in educational leadership from Minnesota State University, Mankato.

US Army

Walz, right, and Gary Bloomberg stand at an artillery training facility at Camp Guernsey in Wyoming in 1992.

US Army

As a first-time candidate for Congress, Walz arrives at an event featuring former Vice President Walter Mondale in Owatonna, Minnesota, in October 2006. Walz was in a tight race with Republican Rep. Gil Gutknecht.

Jim Mone/AP

Walz, second from right, appears with other newly elected House members on the steps of the US Capitol in November 2006.

J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Walz talks with New York Sen. Hillary Clinton in Washington, DC, in 2007. Over more than a decade in Congress, Walz assembled a fairly centrist voting record. As a first-time campaigner, he opposed a ban on same-sex marriage and supported abortion rights. And once in Congress, he balanced that out with comparatively more conservative positions on gun rights, which resulted in him scoring a National Rifle Association endorsement. Walz has since fallen out of favor with the gun lobby over his support for gun safety actions as governor.

Susan Walsh/AP

Shortly after winning a third term, Walz appears with his wife, Gwen, and their children, Hope and Gus, at a mock swearing-in ceremony with House Speaker John Boehner in 2011.

Jacquelyn Martin/AP

Walz, right, looks at fellow Minnesota Rep. Chip Cravaack during a meeting of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in February 2012.

Carolyn Kaster/AP

Walz and other lawmakers watch President Barack Obama sign the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act in April 2012.

Carolyn Kaster/AP

Walz questions witnesses from the Department of Veterans Affairs in 2014 as the House Veterans' Affairs Committee investigates allegations of gross mismanagement and misconduct at VA hospitals.

J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Walz speaks with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Capitol Hill in 2015.

Carolyn Kaster/AP

Walz, a candidate for governor, hugs his children, Hope and Gus, following a campaign rally in Rochester, Minnesota, in 2018. Walz would go on to win that election to succeed outgoing Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton.

Anthony Souffle/Star Tribune/AP

Walz, as governor-elect, leans to get a picture of the wife and children of Steve Grove, left, in January 2019. Grove was Walz's new commissioner of employment and economic development. At right is Peggy Flanagan, the incoming lieutenant governor.

Doug Glass/AP

Walz reads a book to children in January 2019 at People Helping People, a shelter in Minneapolis for families experiencing homelessness amid extreme cold weather conditions.

Jim Mone/AP

Walz attends a memorial service for George Floyd in Minneapolis in June 2020. At left is Martin Luther King III. Behind them is Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar.

Bebeto Matthews/AP

Walz greets Joe Biden as the Democratic presidential candidate arrives in Duluth, Minnesota, in September 2020.

Carolyn Kaster/AP

Walz, right, and former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty receive Covid-19 vaccines in Eagan, Minnesota, in March 2021.

Mohamed Ibrahim/AP

Walz and Klobuchar speak in April 2021 before funeral services for Daunte Wright, an unarmed Black man who was shot by a police officer during a traffic stop.

John Minchillo/Pool/AP

Walz hands out pumpkin bars to a gun safety advocate before the first day of the legislative session in St. Paul in January 2023.

Abbie Parr/AP

Walz greets Vice President Kamala Harris as she arrives in Minneapolis in March 2024.

Stephen Maturen/AFP/Getty Images

Walz poses with people in St. Paul at a canvassing event for the Democratic presidential ticket in July 2024. Walz had been an outspoken defender of Biden. But when the president dropped out, Walz endorsed Kamala Harris the next day and has since emerged as a reliable, energetic and cutting advocate for the Democratic nominee.

Caroline Yang/The New York Times/Redux

Harris and Walz hold <a href="index.php?page=&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnn.com%2Fpolitics%2Flive-news%2Fkamala-harris-trump-election-08-06-24%2Findex.html">their first joint campaign rally</a> in Philadelphia in August 2024.

Harris and Walz hold their first joint campaign rally in Philadelphia in August 2024.

Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

Walz formally accepts the vice presidential nomination during his keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in August 2024. “It’s the honor of my life to accept your nomination for vice president of the United States,” he said at the start of his speech.

Rebecca Wright/CNN

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Vice President Kamala Harris are interviewed by CNN’s Dana Bash at Kim’s Cafe in Savannah, Georgia, on August 29

CNN’s Dana Bash, right, interviews Harris and Walz in Savannah, Georgia, in August 2024. It was Harris’ first in-depth interview with a major media outlet since she became the nominee.

Will Lanzoni/CNN