Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz knocks Republicans for being “weird.” Can he win over Arizona men by being “normal?” 

Vice President Kamala Harris’s brand new running mate is coming to Arizona, and political watchers here say he could draw independent male voters into her coalition if he can follow the playbook of another Democrat Harris considered for the post: Sen. Mark Kelly. 

The 60-year-old Walz was relatively unknown outside of his home state of Minnesota until this week. Now, he has three months to introduce himself on the biggest stage in politics — and avoid being shoved into a political box. 

“What has underwritten the success of Mark Kelly in Arizona, it’s the same basic thing that I think is going to underwrite the success of Walz in Arizona,” said David Waid, former executive director of the Arizona Democratic Party. “He is a Democrat who breaks the mold, who breaks the expectations and can’t be put neatly into a box.” 

Since she took over the top of the ticket last month, Harris has made up much of the ground that President Joe Biden had lost to former President Donald Trump in the years since the 2020 election. The race has narrowed, public polling shows, and the Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan group that forecasts elections, this week moved Arizona from “lean Republican” to “toss-up.” 

A new survey from the Arizona polling firm HighGround found Harris narrowly leading Trump in Arizona 44% to 42% among likely voters. She has a 15 percentage point lead among female voters, but Trump has a 10 percentage point lead with men. The survey was conducted July 30-Aug. 5 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.38 percentage points.

Walz certainly “will not hurt her with men,” said Chuck Coughlin, the president and CEO of HighGround and a longtime Republican strategist who left the party in the Trump era. The campaign also has a number of issues to clarify to voters during the Democratic National Convention later this month, he added. 

“As the survey shows, she is struggling with men in general,” Coughlin said. “Having a strong and confident response on immigration and articulating a strong and confident position on Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan will help her with men. But most importantly, being clear-eyed about economic policies, tax cuts vs. deficit concerns will help her.” 

If Walz can play up his working class and pro-union bona fides, his background as a teacher and his perspective as a hunter who understands gun rights, he could tap into what helped Kelly win back-to-back races in 2020 and 2022, Waid said. Walz showed he could win over Republicans when he flipped a red district during his first race for Congress in 2006. 

“He’s going to be appealing to white men independents. I think he’s a perfect fit for that, and that is a very large voting block in Arizona,” Waid said. “This is something that can really begin to put some space between her and Trump, this VP choice.” 

So far, Walz has received a warm reception from Arizona Democrats who have won statewide in recent years. Kelly said Walz and Harris are “building a campaign to unite our country” and Gov. Katie Hobbs said she is “absolutely thrilled” and even let out a scream when she heard the news. Rep. Greg Stanton, who called for Biden to step aside weeks ago, will attend the Harris-Walz rally in Phoenix on Friday.

But the Trump campaign is already working to cast Walz as “dangerously liberal,” playing up progressive initiatives he’s supported as governor. Trump’s team pointed to Walz’s support of stricter emission standards for gas-powered cars, cast doubt on his respect for rural America and tied him to Harris’s native California.

Trump, who is a convicted felon, also attacked Walz for “embracing policies to allow convicted felons to vote” in Minnesota. 

“It’s no surprise that San Francisco Liberal Kamala Harris wants West Coast wannabe Tim Walz as her running-mate – Walz has spent his governorship trying to reshape Minnesota in the image of the Golden State,” Trump campaign Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a written statement. “Walz is obsessed with spreading California’s dangerously liberal agenda far and wide. If Walz won’t tell voters the truth, we will: just like Kamala Harris, Tim Walz is a dangerously liberal extremist, and the Harris-Walz California dream is every American’s nightmare.” 

Some Republicans aren’t buying it. Sam Campana, the first woman mayor of Scottsdale and a lifelong member of the GOP, recently joined a group of Republicans backing Harris and Walz over Trump and Vance. She said that voters have outgrown those labels that the two parties fling at each other, such as “flaming liberal” and “ultra-conservative.”

“You can’t just listen to these labels anymore,” Campana said. “When you give them the biggest tax cut they’ve ever had, that doesn’t sound like a flaming liberal to me. You know, that sounds like somebody who really is listening and caring about their constituents.” 

But other aspects of Walz’s record could hurt him with Arizona voters. Chad Heywood, the former executive director of the Arizona Republican Party, said Walz’s early campaign moves have been “great at making him a likable, common guy introducing himself.” 

“That being said, his positions are very progressive, and I think a lot of the soft Republicans and moderate independent voters won’t appreciate his more liberal positions on controversial issues like gender-affirming care for minors, abortion, marijuana legalization,” Heywood said. “Probably a missed opportunity for the Harris ticket to have reached undecided moderate voters.” 

Harris has been on defense when it comes to immigration, a top issue for Arizona voters. Democrats who have won statewide race in Arizona are often more conservative on the issue than their party is nationally, and Republicans killed a bipartisan immigration bill in Congress earlier this year to avoid handing Democrats an election year victory on the issue. 

Walz took a progressive track on immigration as Minnesota governor, namely expanding some state services to undocumented residents. Minnesota expanded drivers’ licenses to all Minnesota residents last year, regardless of their immigration status. The initiative was expected to benefit approximately 81,000 undocumented immigrants in the state, and 20 other states and territories do the same. 

What does Walz bring to the Democratic ticket in Arizona?

What a vice presidential candidate can actually bring to the ticket is an often debated issue in politics. Even former President Donald Trump and his running mate JD Vance have said they expect Vance to have little impact on the race. Vance had a rocky start to his role as Trump’s second-in-command, but tried to hit the reset button during a trip to Arizona last week. 

Harris and Walz balance one another, Campana said, noting that Harris is a woman with a diverse background: her mother was Indian and her father is Jamaican. Walz will let Harris take center stage as the presidential candidate and “work hard in the background,” she said, the way that Harris did for Biden and Biden did for former President Barack Obama.

Both vice presidential candidates are “bringing a vibe to the ticket,” Waid said. Vance balances Trump’s septuagenarian status and speaks to the former president’s base, for example. 

“Vance brings a, let’s call it a ‘Young MAGA’ vibe,” Waid said. And for Walz: “It’s more of what I think most Americans know as a ‘Normal Joe.’”

PHOENIX — Constructing a towering Lego skyscraper or a formidable castle has been a childhood experience for decades. Now, Arizona kids have a chance to take their brick building expertise up a notch.

That’s because the Legoland Discovery Center Arizona is looking for 10 kids between the ages of 5 and 12 to join a Lego building club.

The 2024/2025 Creative Crew, as the club is called, will work on creative projects throughout the year, according to a news release.

How can kids join the latest Legoland creative crew?

To join the club, kids will have to join a contest.

First, they’ll need to put together a creative or technical Lego build. Then, they’ll upload the build as a contest entry online.

They’ll upload their most creative or technical Lego build as a contest entry online. The center will accept entries through midnight on Aug. 16.

The top 20 applicants will then join an in-person Lego building competition at the Arizona Mills Mall near Southern Avenue and Priest Drive in Tempe.

The in-person portion of the contest will last from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Aug. 24.

Two people will judge the contest: Master Model Builder Delanie Dodge and 8-year-old Tobias Camen.

Tobias won the title of 2024 Mini Master Model Builder of Arizona by participating in a north American Lego contest earlier this year.

What will the Arizona Legoland center club do?

Kids who join the club will take part in various building projects throughout the year at the Legoland Discovery Center Arizona.

Throughout the year, the Creative Crew will create special Lego builds for different events. The kids will also learn advanced building techniques and join monthly meetings.

Several rewards are also in store for winners. Children will win a four pack of annual passes to the center for trips throughout the year.

Follow @KTAR923

SCOTTSDALE, AZ (AZFamily) — Supporters of some conservative school board candidates in Scottsdale claim their opponents got an unfair advantage because of a change in the city’s enforcement posture on political street signs.

Arizona has strict laws governing political signage in the public right of way, including criminal penalties for people who improperly remove or deface signs.

When the slate of Democratic candidates for Scottsdale Unified School Board started placing their signs around July 22, their opponents thought it was a clear breach of the rules.

“It has to be an equal playing field,” said Jill Dunican, a Scottsdale resident who supports the Republican slate.

Dunican and other supporters of the Republican slate felt the Democratic signs were displayed too early, before a 71-day window established by state law.

They filed complaints, and a city code enforcement officer initially suggested the signs were in violation.

Documents provided to Arizona’s Family show the city responded by removing one sign on July 23.

The following day, code enforcement said it received guidance from the legal department that the signs should be allowed to stay.

“You’re caught off guard and the other team is getting visibility and name recognition,” Dunican said. “Allowing teams to operate under different rules is clearly election interference.”

Democratic candidates Mike Sharkey, Donna Lewis, and Matt Pittinsky did not respond to an email Monday seeking comment.

Based on the city’s interpretation of state law, the Democrats placed their signs within the legal window.

Arizona law lets people place political street signs 71 days before a primary election, as long the signs meet certain requirements and are for candidates “running for public office.” That means candidates could start placing signs on May 20.

However, the Scottsdale school board race is unusual.

The race only appears on the general election ballot in November, not the July primary, causing confusion about when the 71-day window begins.

The conservative candidates—Gretchen Jacobs, Jeanne Beasley, and Drew Hassler—planned their signage strategy to coincide with a start date of Aug. 26.

Dunican said the city’s longstanding interpretation of the signage law was that the window started 71 days before the election a candidate appeared in.

An email from a Scottsdale Code Enforcement officer provided to Arizona’s Family cites Aug. 26 as the start date for candidates in the Nov. 5 election.

However, within two days of that email, records show code enforcement officers received new guidance from the city’s legal department.

State law “provides a single period during which election signs are legal: from 71 days before the primary election to 15 days after the general election. State law on this subject does not currently provide separate periods for primary and general elections, only that single span,” Kelly Corsette, communications and public affairs director for the City of Scottsdale, said in a statement to Arizona’s Family.

Corsette did not respond to questions about whether the city reinterpreted the signage law or if the communication from Code Enforcement was based on an error or outdated information.

“In attempting to be responsive to resident complaints, staff initially acted based on the city’s sign ordinance, however, during an election, state law supersedes Scottsdale’s local sign regulations, and the city must follow the State law,” Corsette said.

Dunican and other supporters of the conservative slate believe the Democrats were “tipped off” by someone in the city about the change in enforcement posture.

According to documents, the city sent a guidance email to candidates for mayor and city council on May 16, informing them the signage window opened on May 20.

It’s not clear if that email was shared with candidates for the school board.

The change in enforcement posture on political signs forced the conservative candidates to move up their timeline and rapidly find a designer and printer, Dunican said.

Jacobs, Beasley, and Hassler started placing their large street signs Tuesday night, two weeks behind the other candidates, she said.

“They lost visibility that they’re now desperately trying to catch up,” Dunican said. “The city of Scottsdale most certainly committed election interference.”

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