ST PAUL, Minn. — It wasn't the ambling walk around the fair that so many people take during the last weeks of August, but on Sunday Gov. Tim Walz visited at the Great Minnesota Get-Together.
Just before 10 a.m., the governor and his secret service escort rolled into the St. Paul fairgrounds. Dressed in head-to-toe Minnesota Grown apparel, Walz's first stop was grabbing a pork chop on a stick. After a few quick bites and a wave to the gathered crowd, he made a beeline for the Dairy Building.
Sliding behind the counter at the Dairy Bar, the Vice Presidential hopefully passed out soft serve and shakes.
"For those not from Minnesota," Walz declared, vanilla milkshake in hand, "just to be clear, there's a lot of great state fairs in the country. This is the best one. And I say that, having tried pork chops in Iowa and having been at other ones. Great State Fair."
When asked what was different about this fair, Walz was quick to note that he wouldn't have 12 days to visit this year. He also expressed concern about the disruption he and his entourage caused to vendors and other visitors at the fair.
"But it's exciting," he continued. "I think that people are seeing that we're getting to talk about Minnesota across the country, talk about the economy here, talk about things like the State Fair, talk about agriculture, that's really exciting."
After a pause for photos with people in the crowd, Walz moved on to talk with Princess Kay of the Milky Way.
A family that drove up for the weekend from Chicago told KARE 11 that when they heard that Gov. Walz was going to be at the fair, they didn't want to miss the opportunity to meet him.
"We're really excited about the campaign, really excited to visit Minnesota for the first time," Arnel Hammond said.
Arnell's daughter Moriah said she loves a long car ride and was excited to see Walz at the fair.
"I saw an amazing future Vice President," she said, "and he's gonna do great things."
Gov. Walz is scheduled to host and meet and greet with local labor leaders in St. Paul on Monday before heading to Milwaukee for Laborfest 2024.