Republican lieutenant governor candidate Matt Birk utilised his Twitter account over the weekend to elevate a declare circulating among conservatives that DFL Gov. Tim Walz purchased a cabin in neighboring South Dakota.
Responding to a marketing campaign tweet from Walz about upholding “Minnesota values” this election cycle, Birk, a previous Minnesota Viking, blasted Walz as a “dude from Nebraska, who just acquired a lake location in South Dakota, aiming to turn us into California, lecturing us about OUR Minnesota values.”
Nichole Johnson, Walz’s campaign manager, reported the claim is untrue. “Neither the governor nor his husband or wife possess any assets, enable by itself a home in South Dakota,” she mentioned, including: “This form of dishonesty won’t belong wherever around the governor’s office.”
Walz’s January 2022 financial disclosure with the point out confirmed no house possession at the time. The governor and his household live at the governor’s residence in St. Paul, which is owned by the state. Governors normally reside at the home for the duration of their tenure in business office. Walz sold his dwelling in Mankato prior to transferring to St. Paul.
Due to the fact Sunday, the tweet has gotten hundreds of interactions on the social media system, but there is no evidence backing up Birk’s declare. The campaign of Birk and governor prospect Scott Jensen did not react to recurring requests for much more information and facts.
The thought that Walz owns a lake residence in South Dakota appears to have initially surfaced on social media this spring and early summer season from consumers who don’t give any supporting evidence. A person person consistently tweeting the assert circled Lake Hendricks, which stretches from Minnesota throughout the border to South Dakota, as the alleged spot of Walz’s lakefront house.
But the Brookings County Equalization Business office in South Dakota claimed there are no property records beneath the title of both the governor or his spouse, Gwen Walz, wherever in the county. Their information are up to date weekly.
Birk, a newcomer to politics, is the presumptive GOP nominee for lieutenant governor just after he and Jensen gained the backing of Republican Social gathering activists more than 4 other candidates in Could. Their ticket faces only token opposition in the approaching August most important election.