Vice President Kamala Harris chose Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to be her running mate, hoping his rural ties and progressive policies will appeal to moderate voters as well as shore up the Democratic base.

Mr. Walz spent 12 years in Congress as a Democrat representing a solidly Republican district in rural Minnesota. His Midwestern roots and folksy style could help balance the ticket led by Ms. Harris, a California liberal.

Three people familiar with the decision confirmed the pick to The Associated Press on Tuesday.

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Ms. Harris hopes Mr. Walz helps the ticket in the Midwest in November.

Known for his folksy demeanor, Mr. Walz could help Ms. Harris the most in the battleground state of Wisconsin, which is Minnesota’s neighbor. Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania make up the Democrats’ “blue wall” that would likely block former President Donald Trump, the GOP nominee, from the White House.

Though Mr. Trump has boasted he will put Minnesota in play this year, Ms. Harris’ pick isn’t about that. Minnesota hasn’t supported a Republican for president since President Nixon in 1972, and polls show Ms. Harris has a roughly 6-point lead over Mr. Trump in the state.

An NPR poll released Tuesday morning found that 71% of voters have either never heard of Mr. Walz or are unsure how to rate him. The same survey found that 17% of voters have a positive view of him, while 12% have an unfavorable opinion.

Other names on Ms. Harris’ shortlist fared much better with fewer voters saying they never heard of them, including Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania (53%) and Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona (52%).

Mr. Walz is a rare gun-owning Democrat who has talked about his love of hunting. In fact, Mr. Walz was once the darling of the National Rifle Association, which endorsed him and donated to his campaigns. In 2016, Guns & Ammo magazine included him on its list of top 20 politicians for gun owners. 

However, after the February 2018 mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida, Mr. Walz began championing tightening firearm restrictions and has spoken out in favor of an assault weapons ban.

As Minnesota’s governor, he signed into law several gun control measures, including one increasing penalties for someone acquiring a weapon on behalf of someone who is not eligible to own firearms.

The policy reversal has earned him scorn from pro-gun groups, including the NRA, which downgraded his rating to F.

Mr. Walz has governed further to the left than expected.

He joins Ms. Harris who, since replacing President Biden at the top of the ticket, has sought to distance herself from her past far-left stances.

The Trump campaign has portrayed Ms. Harris as a far-left liberal who is soft on crime and immigration. At a recent campaign event, Mr. Trump called her “a radical left-wing person.”

Mr. Walz has supported universal free school meals for students, voting rights for the formerly incarcerated, driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants and recreational marijuana. He signed a law making abortion a “fundamental right” in Minnesota.

He recently defended those policies against conservative criticism in a CNN interview with a mocking response.

“What a monster! Kids are eating and having full bellies so they can go learn and women are making their own healthcare decisions,” he said.

Not being as well known among national voters may make it easier for the Trump campaign to depict him in a negative light.

Perhaps the largest backlash Mr. Walz has faced from conservatives stems from his efforts to protect gender-affirming care, as part of his effort to make the state a “trans refuge.” 

It’s a topic that has been critical in this election cycle among conservative Christian groups, which typically vote Republican. They argue such measures hurt vulnerable children instead of helping them.

Mr. Walz also was widely panned for his slow response to the 2020 riots in Minnesota following the murder of George Floyd. His handling of the situation will likely be fodder for the Trump campaign.

Mr. Walz delayed sending the National Guard into Minneapolis when riots broke out following Floyd’s murder at the hands of police, waiting three days. As a result of the delay, hundreds of businesses in Minneapolis and St. Paul were burned to the ground.