Everytown, Moms Demand Action Respond to Kamala Harris Selecting Governor Tim Walz as her Pick for Vice President

WASHINGTON — Today, after Kamala Harris selected Governor Tim Walz as her pick for Vice President, Everytown for Gun Safety, Moms Demand Action, and Students Demand Action released the following statements:

 “Governor Walz signed a sweeping package of gun safety bills into law just last year, so it’s no surprise that Vice President Harris, who helped lead the strongest gun safety White House in history, picked him as her running mate,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety. “This election is a life-or-death moment for the clear majority of Americans who are demanding to live free from gun violence. Everytown will go all out to help Vice President Harris and Governor Walz defeat Trump and Vance, whose ‘guns everywhere’ agenda is a dream come true for extremists and criminals.”

“Kamala Harris has spent her entire public service career making communities safer, and with Governor Walz as her running mate, she has a partner who shares this fundamental commitment,” said Angela Ferrell-Zabala, executive director of Moms Demand Action. “While the Trump-Vance ticket represents danger and extremism, Harris and Walz stand for the future we all deserve. From now until November, we’ll harness the power of our 11 million-strong movement to elect the leaders who will actually fight for a safer America.”

“Gen Z has zero interest in losing any more rights under Donald Trump. We either go forward with a Harris-Walz Administration, or we go back. Gen Z is not going back,” said Timberlyn Mazeikis, a gun violence survivor and volunteer leader with Students Demand Action from Minnesota. “Gun violence is the number one killer of our generation, meaning we can’t afford anything less than leaders who will prioritize basic gun safety. So the choice is easy. Our weight is behind the ticket that’ll ban assault weapons, not books.” 

What You Need to Know About Governor Walz’s Record on Gun Safety:

• Earlier this year, Governor Walz signed legislation to prohibit automatic weapon modification devices and collect gun crime data.
• Last year, Governor Walz was named State Level Gun Sense Lawmaker of Year at Everytown’s Gun Sense University.
  • Everytown endorsed Governor Walz’s 2022 gubernatorial campaign.
• In 2023, after winning a gun sense trifecta in Minnesota that was bolstered by four Moms Demand Action Volunteers running for and winning a seat in the Minnesota Senate, Walz signed a critical public safety omnibus bill into law.

The measures he signed into law included universal background checks, a Red Flag law, and one of the largest investments in community-based violence prevention programs of any state to date.