Democratic VP pick Tim Walz stars at party convention

Tim Walz will officially accept the nomination to be Kamala Harris's White House running mate Wednesday as he presses a charm offensive that has seen him become a darling of the Democratic National Convention.

Michelle and Barack Obama made for a hard act to follow Tuesday as they brought down the house at the packed arena hosting the party's nominating convention, with the former president saying Harris would fight for Americans and calling her November poll rival Donald Trump "dangerous."

Described as a "happy warrior" on a ticket seeking to project optimism in contrast with the darker tone of Trump's campaign, under-the-radar Minnesota governor Walz has been ubiquitous in Chicago as he seeks to introduce himself to the party and the country.

Walz, 60, has earned chants of "Tim! Tim! Tim!" and requests for selfies from delighted attendees in appearances at panels and state delegations as he energizes grassroots activists, less than three months ahead of Election Day.

The former National Guard officer has made a name for himself as one of the Democrats' most effective communicators, with his criticism of Trump and running mate J.D. Vance as "weird" going viral shortly before Harris entered the race.

"Not only do we have massive energy in our convention, we've got a lot more energy where they had their convention—right here," Walz said at a packed rally with Harris Tuesday, in the same Milwaukee arena where Trump and his Republicans staged their convention in July.

Exuding folksy charm, Walz brings a rural Midwestern perspective to the ticket but is seen as being from the liberal wing of the Democratic Party.

Most Americans still don't know him, and he is likely to give the convention in Chicago and the wider...