My wife and I were firmly in the Josh Shapiro camp. Our current governor here in Pennsylvania is doing a great job and is very well respected. Plus, we need to win Pennsylvania, the biggest swing state. Without PA, it is unlikely any Democrat will win.

But as the media started writing more about Minnesota governor Tim Walz, the more I saw the potential. And now that he is the VP candidate, I am convinced that this was the right choice.

Walz will help carry those swing states that might have been suspicious of another East Coast liberal. (And let’s not discount the sad fact that there is still plenty of anti-semitism out there, which could make the difference in a close election.) So now Shapiro can travel his home state to make sure Harris captures Pennsylvania.

Admittedly, Walz’s record could be construed to be just as liberal as Shapiro (both are rather moderate in many ways), but Walz’s charm and history speaks volumes about his intentions. He just seems like the good neighborhood father that everyone trusts who wants to spend his life helping people — one of those politicians who got elected not out of some personal ego ambition, but because he saw it was the best way to help the largest amount of people.

So I have a lot more optimism these days, especially as I see the poll numbers moving quickly in our direction, and states that were clearly in the Republican column moving to the “too close to call” column.