Tim Walz Taps St. Louis Park Rep. As Running Mate

Congressman Tim Walz announced last week that Minnesota Rep. Peggy Flanagan, a DFL party member from St. Louis Park, will join his run for governor as the lieutenant governor candidate. Walz also announced the two will go on a statewide tour with stops in Rochester, Mankato, Duluth, Hibbing, Bemidji, Moorhead, and St. Cloud.

“I’m really excited to join this campaign,” Flanagan said in a statement. “Whether it’s the students in his classroom, the players on his team, or the soldiers that he served with, I think that Tim really sees the full humanity in the folks around him.”

“Peggy is going to make a wonderful lieutenant governor for the state of Minnesota,” Walz said. “Peggy’s vast knowledge and expertise will be something I rely on daily.”

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Walz and Flanagan first met at Camp Wellstone in 2005, where she taught him how to knock on doors during his first Congressional run. They’ve maintained a friendship ever since, according to the campaign.

Walz, who represents Minnesota’s First District in Congress, is just the second Democrat in 115 years to represent the district.

Flanagan is the state representative from Dist. 46A, representing St. Louis Park, Golden Valley, Plymouth, and Medicine Lake. If elected, Flanagan would be the first person of color ever to hold a constitutional office in Minnesota, and would be the highest ranking Native American state-level officeholder in U.S. history.

Photo credit: State Rep. Peggy Flanagan, D-Minn., speaks during the final day of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia , Thursday, July 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)