State GOP leader calls Harris-Walz agenda ‘extreme,’ out of touch with rural voters
House Minority Leader Demuth confident in GOP down-ballot races
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Minnesota Republicans hope to flip the state red this November, despite Democrat Gov. Tim Walz’s elevation from governor to vice presidential candidate by the Harris Campaign.
Democratic Presidential Nominee Vice President Kamala Harris is banking on Walz’s small-town roots and ability to appeal to rural Americans who typically vote Republican. Many supporters think Walz fits the bill, but Minnesota House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring, alleges that during his 2018 campaign for governor, Walz dismissed much of greater Minnesota.
He “basically said, don’t worry about that part of the state … it’s all just rocks and cows,” Demuth told Morning Edition host Cathy Wurzer Friday. “As governor, he’s done very little to reach out to all of greater Minnesota, but I think people in greater Minnesota absolutely remember an $18 billion surplus that was wasted and not returned back” in tax relief.
In early 2023, Minnesota had a surplus topping $17 billion. By the time the spring legislative session ended, Walz had signed into law a $72 billion budget including free universal school meals, one-time rebate checks, a $2.6 billion capital investment package, a state-run paid family and medical leave program, $300 million toward early education, free college tuition for eligible students and $300 million in aid for nursing homes.
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“It’s important to recognize that the Harris-Walz ticket will be the most extreme progressive and far left-leaning ticket ever in presidential history,” Demuth said.
Demuth agrees Walz is “very personable,” but said over the past two years as minority leader she’s had little opportunity to work with the governor, citing a specific example of concern over a failed meeting to talk about nursing home funding toward the end of the 2023 session. Demuth explained Walz was a no-show for a meeting.
“I think that he does very minimal to reach out across the aisle or directly,” Demuth said. “So I don’t think that plays very well, especially in greater Minnesota, when they hear that he is not available and willing to work for all Minnesotans.”
In the Minnesota Senate, the DFL has just a one-seat majority — and that spot is the sole Senate seat up for election, while all House seats will be on the ballot. Though Walz is now in contention for the White House, Demuth isn’t worried about the GOP’s chances in Minnesota down-ballot races.
“Now I would say I didn’t expect Governor Walz to be on the top of the ticket, but yet that doesn’t change our plan,” Demuth said. “So we are very confident that we will hold the 64 seats that we have and pick up just the four that are needed to change that and to bring balance back into the legislature and to have that Republican majority in the House.”