Tim Walz
A high school teacher and National Guardsman who climbed to the national stage, embodying a pragmatic Midwestern brand of Democratic politics.
Born 1964 (age 62)·Governor of Minnesota since 2019·Birthday: April 6·Baby Boomers
Biography
Tim Walz’s path to the governor’s mansion and the 2024 vice-presidential ticket was anything but conventional. For over two decades, he was a geography teacher and football coach in Mankato, Minnesota, while simultaneously serving a 24-year career in the Army National Guard. This dual life shaped his political identity: part educator, part soldier, wholly devoted to public service. He first won a seat in the U.S. House in 2006 as an underdog, representing a southern Minnesota district. In Congress, he was known as a workhorse focused on veterans' affairs and agriculture, avoiding the cable news spotlight. As Governor of Minnesota, he championed education funding, clean energy initiatives, and criminal justice reform, often finding compromise in a politically divided legislature. His selection as a vice-presidential nominee in 2024 was a testament to his everyman appeal, his record of governance in a purple state, and a biography that reads like a chapter of American civic life.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Tim was born in 1964, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Tim Was Born
The biggest hits of 1964
#1 Movie
Mary Poppins
Best Picture
My Fair Lady
#1 TV Show
Bonanza
Tim's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1964Born
Civil Rights Act signed; Beatles arrive in America
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $13,450Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"I Want to Hold Your Hand" — The BeatlesBest Picture: My Fair Lady
1969Started school
Apollo 11: humans walk on the Moon; Woodstock festival
Gas: $0.35/galHome: $15,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Sugar, Sugar" — The ArchiesBest Picture: Midnight Cowboy
1977Became a teenager
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1980Could drive
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1982Could vote
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1985Turned 21
Live Aid concerts raise money for Ethiopian famine
Gas: $1.12/galHome: $62,900Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Careless Whisper" — Wham!Best Picture: Out of Africa
1994Turned 30
Nelson Mandela elected president of South Africa
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $90,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"The Sign" — Ace of BaseBest Picture: Forrest Gump
2004Turned 40
Indian Ocean tsunami kills over 230,000
Gas: $1.88/galHome: $157,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Yeah!" — UsherBest Picture: Million Dollar Baby
2014Turned 50
Russia annexes Crimea; Ebola outbreak in West Africa
Gas: $3.37/galHome: $160,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Happy" — Pharrell WilliamsBest Picture: Birdman
2024Turned 60
AI reshapes industries; Paris Olympics
Gas: $3.31/galHome: $372,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Espresso" — Sabrina CarpenterBest Picture: Anora
2026Age 62 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Elected the 41st Governor of Minnesota in 2018 and re-elected in 2022.
- Served six terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Minnesota's 1st congressional district.
- Was the Democratic nominee for Vice President of the United States in the 2024 election.
- Signed legislation establishing a 100% carbon-free electricity standard for Minnesota by 2040.
Did You Know?
He achieved the rank of Command Sergeant Major, the highest enlisted rank in the Army National Guard.
He taught in the People's Republic of China as a teacher exchange participant in 1989.
He was the first Democrat in over a decade to win Minnesota's 1st congressional district when he was first elected.
He and his wife, Gwen Whipple, are both former public school teachers.
“"I’ve spent my life believing in the promise of America, that if you work hard and play by the rules, you can get ahead."”
