Vice President Kamala Harris made an excellent choice of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz for her running mate. The dynamic yet plain-speaking Walz brings his Midwestern roots and proven track record of progressive accomplishments to the ticket. He’s also skilled in his ability to effectively message against Republicans — a strength Democrats have sorely lacked.
Prior to Tuesday’s announcement, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro had been among the three finalists to fill out the Democratic ticket, and there were reports that the popular chief executive of swing-state Pennsylvania had conveyed to Harris’ team his struggle with the decision to leave his current role as governor to pursue the vice presidency. And there was pushback from a number of Democratic key constituencies — specifically, public school education advocates’ expressing concerns about Shapiro’s embrace of private school vouchers and the National Women’s Defense League’s voicing doubts about his handling of sexual harassment complaints against a former staffer.
Shapiro passionately declared that freedom was on the ballot and joined the crowd in chanting the Harris campaign slogan, ‘We’re not going back.’
But at Tuesday’s campaign event in Philadelphia — where Walz was introduced as Harris’ running mate — Shapiro warmed up the audience with an inspiring and booming speech in his hometown. Shapiro passionately declared that freedom was on the ballot and joined the crowd in chanting the Harris campaign slogan, “We’re not going back.”
This moment marks not an end but a potentially new beginning for Shapiro.
As the Democratic Party unites behind the Harris-Walz ticket, it must leverage governors like Shapiro as invaluable surrogates. His crucial political and communication skills can amplify three key strategies: aggressively campaigning in Rust Belt states, highlighting the Biden administration’s successes and reshaping narratives about the administration’s challenges in conservative-leaning media.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee should also deploy Shapiro to key purple districts where Democrats need wins to maintain control of the House, capitalizing on his broad appeal in purple Pennsylvania.
Shapiro’s campaigning prowess is undeniable. With a 62% favorability rating in Pennsylvania and his experience defeating a pro-MAGA candidate who espoused wild conspiracy theories, his ability to cut through political noise will be invaluable. The campaign must maintain a strong presence in states like Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin — with Shapiro showcasing his success as a young, accomplished and battle-tested governor in a swing state.
Furthermore, Shapiro’s top-notch communication skills are essential in today’s media landscape. A Pew Research study revealed that 86% of Americans often or sometimes get news from digital devices. Shapiro has already proven his effectiveness on platforms like “The Breakfast Club,” a popular internet radio show. While it’s important for him to appear on left-leaning podcasts like “Pod Save America,” Democrats must also engage with conservative platforms to broaden their reach.
But to truly serve as an effective national surrogate, Shapiro must address his past controversies, particularly those surrounding public education. He must build on his strengths, pivot from past controversies and focus on being an exceptional campaigner. He should highlight his support for public schools, pointing to Pennsylvania’s recent $1.1 billion increase for K-12 public education in the state’s budget — the largest single-year bump in the state’s history — while reconsidering his stance on vouchers, which, for the most part, are Republican-supported tax subsidies for existing private school families and no-strings-attached bailouts for struggling private schools. In Florida, 70% of voucher recipients were already in private schools, and some families used the tax dollars to buy big screen TVs and trips to Disney World. Moreover, research has demonstrated that students who used vouchers to enroll in private schools performed, on average, worse than the students in the public schools they left. Public schools play a vital role in building the next generation of Americans, and if Shapiro wants to show the country he could be a leader of the future, he cannot support taking money away from the institutions that teach our children. America is great because of public schools — they bring together students of diverse backgrounds and help ensure every kid gets a quality education. Any Democrat who wants to lead the party cannot value subsidizing private education for rich people over protecting public schools for working families. Shapiro is poised to be a powerful surrogate for the Harris-Walz ticket. To be a genuine asset to the Democratic campaign, he must build on his strengths, pivot from past controversies and focus on being an exceptional campaigner. By leveraging Shapiro’s skills alongside Walz’s in Rust Belt states, Democrats can energize their big tent coalition to protect democracy and prevent the Trump-Vance ticket from taking the White House.
Rotimi Adeoye
Rotimi Adeoye is a Philadelphia-based columnist and former speechwriter covering immigration, democracy, and American politics. 
