‘An exceptionally strong addition': Gov. Shapiro reacts to Kamala Harris opting for Tim Walz as running mate

Vice President and Democratic nominee for president Kamala Harris on Tuesday morning selected Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate in the upcoming election.

Yet, there had long been speculation the Pennsylvania’s own governor, Josh Shapiro, might get the call from the vice president.

But in a statement released Tuesday morning, Shapiro said that, while he was able to meet and “speak with the Vice President directly about her vision for the role and the campaign ahead,” there was also work left to do in Pennsylvania.

“My life in public service has always been motivated by my family and my faith. Since I first ran for State Representative 20 years ago, I’ve been called to serve because I want to leave our community, our Commonwealth, and our country better off for our children – and because my faith teaches me that no one is required to complete the task, but neither are we free to refrain from it,” he wrote in a statement.

The governor also posted his entire statement on social media.

“Nearly two weeks ago, Vice President Harris asked me to work with her team to complete the vetting process to be considered as her running mate – and following those conversations, on Sunday, I was grateful to have the opportunity to speak with the Vice President directly about her vision for the role and the campaign ahead,” Shapiro’s statement continued. “As I’ve said repeatedly over the past several weeks, the running mate decision was a deeply personal decision for the Vice President – and it was also a deeply personal decision for me. Pennsylvanians elected me to a four-year term as their Governor, and my work here is far from finished – there is a lot more stuff I want to get done for the good people of this Commonwealth.”

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Shapiro called serving at the state’s 48th governor, the “highest honor of my life,” and said he was proud of the work that he has done in his 19 months in office.

He concluded his remarks with a note of support for Harris and Walz in the upcoming presidential election and said that Walz and his wife, Gwen, were “good friends” of him and his wife, Lori.

“Vice President Kamala Harris has my enthusiastic support – and I know that Governor Tim Walz is an exceptionally strong addition to the ticket who will help Kamala move our country forward,” Shapiro said in a statement. “Lori and I consider Tim and Gwen to be good friends of ours and we are excited for them and for the country to get to know the great people we know them to be. Over the next 92 days, I look forward to traveling all across the Commonwealth to unite Pennsylvanians behind Kamala Harris’ campaign to defeat Donald Trump, become the 47th President of the United States, and build a better future for our country.”

Shapiro is expected to be in attendance on Tuesday evening when Harris and Walz are expected to appear together for the first time as running mates at Temple University’s Liacouras Center.