On Tuesday, Vice President Kamala Harris selected Minnesota Governor Tim Walz to be her Democratic running mate.

Her selection comes as the Democratic Party desperately tries to create a coalition of voters who are energized to beat former President Donald Trump in November after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race in July.

The selection of Walz, a popular Midwestern governor, is an exciting pick that should energize both progressive and moderate Democrats and may be key to appealing to disaffected Republicans.

Walz shot to the top of many Democrats’ hopes for the vice presidential spot after the 60-year-old governor pioneered the use of “weird” as a rhetorical campaign against Republicans. The Democrats are hoping to use this attack line against the Trump campaign to expose, frankly, how bizarre both Donald Trump and his pick for running mate, Ohio Senator J.D. Vance, really are.

Some have described this election as a ‘vibes election’ after the energizing start to the Harris campaign, in part fuelled by the way young activists and the campaign have utilized ‘brat,’ the recent album and pop cultural phenomenon, in their messaging. Walz is the perfect pick in continuing this energy, partly because of his clear expertise as a communicator. He will be able to bring to the fore the many ways in which not only is the prospect of a second Trump term dangerous for America but also that Trump is downright weird and unpresidential. A sort of return to normalcy Walz will be able to advocate, rather than nonsensically ranting about Hannibal Lecter and sharks as Trump has continued to do.

The governor is clearly personable, which is why Walz is seen as such an asset to the Harris campaign. One adviser recalled that during a visit to an infrastructure event with President Biden in January, Walz put the president “in the best mood ever.”

One post on X, formerly Twitter, observed Walz’s authenticity, insofar as he can dress in normal clothes without it looking like “cosplay.” This is a particular strength of his candidacy especially in contrast to J.D. Vance, who has been seen as inauthentic in his working class appeal. In one interview, Walz directly contests Vance and his 2016 best-selling book, Hillbilly Elegy, for the Trump campaign’s failure to accurately represent the types of working-class people that the book discusses: “Those are my people. I come from a town of 400 — 24 kids in a class, 12 cousins, farming, those types of things. And I know they’re not weird. I know they’re not Donald Trump.”

Walz’s appeal to the working-class voters of America is more than mere bark – there’s bite. He won his election to U.S. Congress in 2006 by unseating an incumbent in a Republican-leaning district and won re-election five times before deciding to go for the governorship. He was also the highest-ranking enlisted soldier to have served in the House of Representatives – something that will no doubt appeal to military and veteran voters, many of whom are working class. Prior to Harris’ selection of Walz, he was also endorsed alongside Governor Andy Beshear of Kentucky by Shawn Fain, the president of the United Auto Workers, snubbing the more moderate Governor of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro, who was under consideration by the Harris campaign.

Walz has also retained progressive values in parallel to this working-class base; surprisingly, he supported marriage equality in his 2006 bid for Congress despite it being an unpopular position nationally.

These ideas speak to the strengths that the father of two will bring to the Democratic ticket. Firstly, he will be able to calm the frankly bizarre fears of some voters who are still unsure about the prospect of a woman, let alone a Jamaican-Indian woman, leading the country as commander-in-chief. As an effective communicator from a rural Midwestern community, he will be able to counter the common claim from the Republicans that the Democrats are ‘coastal elites.’

What should not be forgotten is that Hillary Clinton only narrowly won his state of Minnesota in 2016. Certainly, being a popular, effective governor and having far greater charisma than Clinton’s running mate, Tim Kaine, will be paramount in clinching the states in the Midwest, namely Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, that are seen as the path to victory for the Democrats.

Policy is often dismissed in discussions about potential vice-presidential candidates, as the position is famous for its lack of a specific, defined role. Nonetheless, Walz has a strong policy record as governor that will excite progressives. In an interview with CNN, his record as governor was touted – including the way he has championed paid leave and paid sick time policies, legalization of recreational marijuana, universal background checks for guns, free breakfast and lunch for school children, and tuition-free college for low-income students.

In response to the idea of this astounding record being cast as too liberal by the Trump campaign, Walz sarcastically responded: “What a monster. Kids are eating and having full bellies so they can go learn, and women are making their own healthcare decisions.”

Vice presidential nominees almost never differ in policy from the candidate at the top of the ticket. They are used first and foremost as a communicator, and Walz clearly excels in this department. His selection as running mate sends a signal to the progressive wing of the Democratic Party that everyone is at the table – something that the selection of the other top contender, Governor Josh Shapiro, would not have signaled. Tim Walz, if elected, will be only a heartbeat away from the presidency, and may have future presidential ambitions. In any case, his rhetorical ability and progressive record should put those on the left of the Democratic Party at ease.