Manitoba’s premier likes the idea of having a close neighbour in the White House.
Presumptive Democratic Party presidential candidate Kamala Harris chose Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to be her vice-president running mate Tuesday morning.
“If there were a vice-president from Minnesota, I think it would be great to have somebody in the White House who not only knows where Manitoba is on the map, but knows about our hydroelectricity and knows about our ag industry,” Premier Wab Kinew told the Free Press Wednesday.
“That would be a real asset because the trade relationship with the next administration in the U.S. is going to be very important for our economy.”
Walz, a former teacher, football coach and dad with rural roots and Midwestern ways — recently made headlines when he tagged the Donald Trump-JD Vance Republican ticket as “weird.”
Walz made a positive impression on Winnipeg South MP Terry Duguid, who met with the governor in March at the Minnesota state capital in St. Paul.
“I got the impression he’s a friendly and open person who really understood the importance of the Canada-U.S. trading relationship,” said Duguid.
Duguid, parliamentary secretary to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, said he was part of a “Team Canada mission” ahead of the November U.S. presidential election “to reach across the border to talk to people of influence to ensure our relationship remains strong.”
The mission was non-partisan, he said.
“I was very careful not to wade into American politics. We have enough on our own plate right now with our own pre-electoral preoccupation here,” Duguid said, referring to a federal election in Canada on or before Oct. 20, 2025.
Kinew was careful not to pick sides, either.
No matter who wins the election south of the border, Manitoba stands to benefit from the relationship it has with its neighbours, said Kinew, adding he’s never spoken with Walz, but has talked to North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, a Republican.
“If Trump forms the next government in the U.S., many observers are saying Gov. Burgum could have a cabinet appointment,” Kinew said.
“Just a month ago, we were hearing about Doug Burgum potentially being a VP pick,” Kinew said. The former president ultimately chose Vance, an Ohio senator.
“(Burgum) was very helpful to us when we were going through the pipeline shutdown,” Kinew said.
In the spring, Imperial Oil suddenly closed off Winnipeg’s gasoline, diesel and jet fuel lifeline in southern Manitoba for two months in order to do repairs. Although Manitoba ended up sourcing fuel from Western Canada, Burgum helped with contingency plans and identifying potential supplies.
“He was personally involved and put his office into the mix to help us in our time of need,” Kinew said. “It was an important sign that he’s a good neighbour and an ally… I think that would be an important asset for us to turn to because of his familiarity and his history with working with our province.”
In 2021, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, former Progressive Conservative premier Brian Pallister inducted Burgum into the Order of the Buffalo Hunt for his support vaccinating Manitoba-based truck drivers in North Dakota, noted Kelvin Goertzen, who was a member of Pallister’s cabinet.
Manitoba’s premiers in the last 30 years have recognized the importance of building alliances with neighbouring states, the member for Steinbach said.
“It’s really important for premiers to be connected with those governors, because often the president sees those governors as their equals; that’s who they end up dealing with a lot,” said Goertzen, who served on the Canada-U.S. relations committee for 10 years.
“I think that it bodes well for Manitoba and Canada having both of those governors likely to play a significant role… whoever wins the election.”
carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca
Carol Sanders
Legislature reporter
Carol Sanders is a reporter at the Free Press legislature bureau. The former general assignment reporter and copy editor joined the paper in 1997. Read more about Carol.
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