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Vice President Kamala Harris’ pick for running mate is Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, a former teacher and football coach whose straightforward manner of speaking has endeared him to many and helped launch his name into the public consciousness.
Walz’s public persona has what many would describe as dad energy. He makes unsubtle jokes and regularly posts pictures of his dogs. During a widely shared television appearance, he described Republicans as “weird,” a line of attack that resonated with Democrats. Walz comes off as humble, restrained, and eloquent in an everyman way.
A few weeks ago, I explained “Brat summer” and how the Harris campaign was tapping into a cultural moment that has swept across a certain millennial and Gen Z demographic. Now, I’m cutting straight to the point: Tim Walz is Midwest Princess.
This became clear on Tuesday night, shortly after Harris and Walz’s first rally in Philadelphia, when the campaign listed for sale a $40 camo-printed hat. Emblazoned with bright orange letters reading “HARRIS WALZ,” it likely wouldn’t have drawn much attention in the pre-meme age. Camo and orange are standard colors for hunting gear and wouldn’t look out of place in the wardrobe of a Midwestern Democrat.
I’m here to tell you, however, that this otherwise benign hat is part of a calculus by the Harris campaign to appeal to a new set of voters.
Last fall, a relatively obscure pop artist named Chappell Roan released her debut album titled, “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess.” Roan, who was born in Missouri, wears her Midwest roots like armor, often reflecting on her conservative upbringing alongside unabashed lyrics about her sexuality. (She identifies as a lesbian.)
Roan has seen explosive and sudden career growth this year — not unlike Walz — that has catapulted her into the public eye. Her merch store sells a camo hat with orange letters reading “MIDWEST PRINCESS” that has been popular this summer and has come to define her aesthetic.
The Harris / Walz campaign knows this. The product description for the campaign hat reads, “You asked, we answered. The most iconic political hat in America” — a likely reference to memes that were circulating that put Walz’s face on Roan’s body.
The campaign didn’t respond to my questions about the inspiration behind the hat. But it doesn’t really need to. The hat already sold out and is now not shipping again until mid-October. Teen Vogue reports that more than $1 million worth of these hats has been sold so far.
The camo hat is emblematic of Harris running multiple niche campaigns on the back of meme culture. A hunting-themed hat could speak to rural dads who want their kids to have access to abortion just as much as it might to a first-time voter who likes sapphic pop music. The former doesn’t need to understand the Chappell Roan reference, and the latter need not care about hunting. Everyone else can just move along if they don’t get it.
This approach to campaigning is also visible when you examine how the Harris / Walz camp is approaching different social media platforms. The caption for a video on Instagram showing Walz making a JD Vance couch joke is more restrained, with a single couch emoji. On X, the campaign simply quotes Walz next to the clip. On TikTok, that same video has a caption reading “omg Tim Walz WENT THERE,” with several laughing emoji.
It’s nothing new for political campaigns to carefully tailor their messaging depending on who they’re talking to. But it feels like the Harris presidential campaign is taking this approach to a new level. And it’s working: the Harris / Walz ticket has gotten the attention of young people by using a specific color in a few images and now doing a one-off merchandise release.
Anyone who operates online should know that attention is fickle, viral moments die, and adoration can quickly slip into backlash. How long can stunts like these last before they feel tired? The Harris campaign has the attention of young people. Now, they need to win and keep their trust.
