What to know about Minnesota first lady Gwen Walz

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Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz burst onto the national scene as the subject of supporters’ folksy memes and Republicans’ ill-fated attacks after Vice President Harris picked him as her running mate.

In contrast, Minnesota first lady Gwen Walz keeps a lower online profile — in fact, she only joined X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram in August, and follows just three accounts on each platform: her husband, Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff.

But the lifelong Minnesotan has made her mark on the state in many ways, including by supporting Walz’s agenda and championing her own key issues like education and criminal justice reform.

"I can't wait for all of you, and America, to get to know my incredible wife, Gwen, a 29-year public school educator," Walz said onstage at his first campaign rally on Tuesday (which Gwen also attended, wearing a cardigan and ponytail combo that earned her many online admirers). "Don't ever underestimate teachers."

Here’s what to know about Gwen Walz.

Gwen and Tim met as teachers in Nebraska

Gwen Walz was born Gwen Whipple in Glencoe, Minn., and grew up in the western part of the state, according to her official biography. She and her three sisters were raised by their parents, who were educators and small business owners.

Walz earned degrees from Gustavus Adolphus College — a Lutheran-affiliated liberal arts school in St. Peter — and Minnesota State University in Mankato.

She then moved to Nebraska to teach high school English, where she met her now-husband, who taught social studies at the time.

“Tim and I even shared a classroom with just a divider right down the middle when we were teaching in Nebraska,” Walz told MPR