What was Kamala Harris thinking when she picked Tim Walz? So many better Democrats.

Judson L. Jeffries is a professor of African American and African Studies at Ohio State University and a regular contributor to the Columbus Dispatch.

After much deliberation Vice President Kamala Harris has chosen Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, but will he help the ticket?

It is true that governors and U.S. senators are the elected officials most often tapped as a vice presidential running mate, hence Harris’s selection from that pool is not surprising. Dick Cheney and George H. W. Bush were the exceptions over the last 50 years or so, not the rule. But why Walz?

Sure, he is popular among Minnesotans, but that’s Minnesota.

By all accounts, Walz is a fine family man with a folksy way about him, former teacher and coach who comes across as a sincere public servant, having served more than 20 years in the Army National Guard. Despite his military background he is not perceived to be a conservative leaning Democrat.

Hence, what are the Democrats gaining by having Walz on the ticket? So-called liberal Minnesota has been won by Democratic candidates every election since 1976.

Given the globe’s political landscape, it would seem prudent that the vice president be someone who has a track record on matters of national security and foreign policy.

Why not a vice president with world experience or a swing state?

Barack Obama understood this and selected Joe Biden who had served many years on the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.

In the late 1990s, he became the ranking minority member and chaired the committee from 2001 to 2003.

George W. Bush recognized how thin his bona fides were in this area and chose former Secretary of State Dick Cheney as his running mate. Bill Clinton tried to make up for this shortcoming by selecting Al Gore who had served on the Armed Services Committee.

Walz brings neither a wealth of national security nor foreign policy experience to the ticket.

Given the importance of Pennsylvania, Michigan, and even Arizona, one might have expected Harris to grab someone from one of those states, but neither Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro nor U.S. Sen. Bob Casey would have brought to the ticket the kind of national security and foreign policy experience voters find appealing.

While Pennsylvania has supported the Democrats seven out of the last eight elections it strayed from that pattern in 2016 when Donald Trump won the presidency, meaning the state is potentially up for grabs.

What about Kelly, Peters or even Ohio's Brown?

U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, Arizona’s junior senator was also passed over.

The former Naval aviator and astronaut who serves on the committee on armed services and as chairman of the subcommittee on emerging threats and capabilities would have positioned the Democrats to snag Arizona with its 11 electoral votes.

Arizona supported the Democrats in 2020, but it is not a lock, as that is just the second time it has done so since 1976. Members of the United Auto Workers have been critical of Kelly. Those rumblings undoubtedly scared off the Harris camp. Still, given the history of the UAW’s support for Democratic candidates, taking a chance on Kelly would have involved little to no risk.

Finally, there are few presidential elections where the battle ground state of Michigan has not played an important role, thus U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, would have been an even safer choice than Kelly.

Peters, also a retired Navy man, serves on the Committee on Armed Services and the subcommittees on emerging threats and capabilities as well as the subcommittee on cybersecurity. While neither Kelly’s nor Peters’ experience in national security and/or foreign policy is as extensive as either Biden’s or Cheney’s their presence might have added greatly to the Democratic ticket.

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If national security and foreign policy experience was not a priority one wonders why Ohio’s Sherrod Brown was not given consideration.

To say Ohio’s role in presidential elections over the years has been huge is not hyperbole.

In my adult life, save 2020, the ticket that has won Ohio has taken the White House. A ticket that included Brown would have made for an interesting dynamic and revved up the competition for the state’s 17 electoral votes.

Judson L. Jeffries is a professor of African American and African Studies at Ohio State University and a regular contributor to the Columbus Dispatch.