Where's Walz? From under the radar to the VP debate spotlight

ANN ARBOR, Michigan -- At the annual Minnesota-Michigan college football game in Ann Arbor on Saturday, one fan wandered over to the blue "Harris-Walz" tents where Democratic vice-presidential nominee and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz stopped for a 20-minute tailgate visit with fans before heading into Michigan Stadium, also known as the "Big House," to watch his state's Gophers play the Wolverines.

Richard Smith, a registered Democrat from Wolverine Lake, Michigan, said he voted for President Joe Biden in 2020, but is undecided about whether he'd support the party this cycle.

"I'm the undecided person that everyone is looking for," he quipped. And while he's unsure about voting for Vice President Kamala Harris for president, Smith said he is completely in the dark about her running mate. His impression of the Minnesota governor, who was selected, in part, for his ability to be folksy and relatable in these key battleground states, was nonexistent.

"I don't know him at all. I didn't even know who he was," Smith said, gesturing over to the governor.

In the eight weeks since being selected by Harris to join the ticket, Walz -- originally thought to be a dark-horse selection coming from behind to beat out some better-known national figures such as Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly -- has effectively barnstormed the country, holding seven solo rallies, about 14 campaign fundraisers and countless local stops -- totaling over 40 events to introduce himself to voters and rally support behind their candidacy.

Still, according to a recent national poll published by AP-NORC, a quarter of registered voters say they don't know enough about the two-term governor, who served six terms in Congress representing Minnesota's traditionally conservative 1st Congressional District. At the same time, about 21% of registered voters said they didn't know enough about Republican vice-presidential nominee JD Vance -- a 4-point difference -- numbers outside the survey's margin of error.

Walz and Vance are set to hold their only scheduled vice-presidential debate on Tuesday. With the event comes an opportunity for the country to see the governor on a national stage -- something that hasn't happened since his ABC News and MSNBC post-presidential debate interviews on Sept. 10. Before then, his only national TV appearance was a joint sit-down interview with Harris on CNN on Aug. 29.

So, the stakes of the debate are high for the once overly accessible, media-friendly politician, often a fixture of cable programs, especially during the 'veepstakes' process -- to both perform as an attack dog for the ticket against Vance, who the campaign has called a "slick debater" and also introduce himself to the country as the approachable Midwestern "coach" he's billed as.

"I think this is a big moment for him. Up till now, he's been heavily managed and carefully guarded," said Larry Jacobs, the director of the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance at the University of Minnesota. Jacobs has tracked Walz since before his first congressional campaign in 2005.

"Now he's going to be out there on the stage, and if he makes mistakes or comes off as not quite as authentic as he's been claiming, I think it'll be damaging to him, and he might make mistakes. To me, he's not -- I mean, he came to politics mid-career. This is not a guy who has a lot of experience and no experience on the national stage," Jacobs added.

Walz's transformed relationship with national media

A day after Walz's appearance at the Michigan-Minnesota game, the governor traveled to Harbor Springs, Michigan, to resume his debate preparations -- during which he answered his first question from the press about the upcoming showdown as he was walking through a local pumpkin patch.

Walz told ABC News that debate prep was "going great" -- a nearly one-second-long response following handfuls of shouted questions from traveling press and even more media inquiries. The following day, he approached cameras to express sympathy for those affected by Hurricane Helene.

Walz, on the eve of the debate, said his "focus" was on the storm and its destruction across the Southeast, even while he was "looking forward" to Tuesday night. He then dodged a few more questions inquiring about his reported nervousness over the debate. He finally acknowledged a question about how Minnesota's first lady Gwen Walz was helping him prepare: "She's wonderful. She wins every one." he said. Later in the day he said one more thing: When asked what he wants voters to learn about him during the debate, Walz responded "we're just trying to do our best for folks."

That brief moment -- while rare -- is a stark departure from his usual, near non-existent interactions with the national traveling press, but an even clearer divergence from his sweeping accessibility as a state and federal politician.

Walz, as governor, as the most recent chair of the Democratic Governors Association and even as a congressman, was actively engaged with the press corps. He held press conferences and media availabilities and granted nearly all interview requests. During the vice presidential selection process, Walz made himself even more available to the news media, participating in countless TV hits, podcast interviews and press conferences after campaign events. That access is how he got on the radar of many Democratic voters and even Harris herself, in part.

Now, Walz has held only a few media availabilities with his traveling press corps. He has answered only a handful of shouted questions over the past eight weeks, typically replying with clipped answers.

Notably, the campaign did not make Walz available for an interview for a print profile of the governor since he's become Harris' running mate. The campaign only allowed Mark Leibovich, writing for The Atlantic, a look at the governor "while he worked crowds and greeted donors, dignitaries, and volunteers in receiving lines."

Voters appear to be noticing, though it's unclear if they mind the absence.

Nolan LeBlanc, a Democrat from Allentown, Pennsylvania, told ABC News at a recent Walz campaign rally that he was not "aware" of the governor until the vice-presidential selection process, noting that he learned more about him from social media and television interviews. He said he didn't care that Walz not as front-and-center as he used to be.

"I think that his credentials are pretty good, and that we're learning as we go," he said, when asked about the decrease in national media appearances.

Christine Darbonne from Bloomfield Township, Michigan, a Republican voter until 2016 who is now planning to cast her vote for the Harris-Walz ticket, was at the Michigan game that the governor attended on Saturday but was unaware he was in attendance. She said she though he may be more in the background now, but not fading "too much."

"I guess initially I did see more of him. But I still -- I don't think that he's faded too much, I still hear references of him speaking. And I think he's great, I love how approachable he is and he has that salt-of-the-earth, Midwestern [quality]," she said.

But while Walz has mostly avoided national media, he's is doing local interviews with radio and television stations during many campaign swings -- something Harris is also engaging in as she crisscrosses the country. Walz has also done some social media appearances. In late August he appeared on the popular social media account "SubwayTakes" and on Monday, the day ahead of his debate performance, he was featured on "WeRateDogs," another viral account known for posting photos of dogs.

National media hasn't yet been part of the strategy -- but it soon may be

A source with direct knowledge of Walz's campaign strategy told ABC News that while media hasn't been the top priority during his time on the ticket so far, he will ramp up national media interaction following the debate on Tuesday.

His time on the trail has been "expedited" the source said, with the first task being to tour the country and deliver stump speeches, participate in the convention and now prepare for this high-stakes vice-presidential debate.

"He's very much hunkered down -- the goal in front of him is to do well in this debate," the source said.

"There will be a steady increase [in media appearances] and that'll start to become clear very quickly after the debate," the source added.

Stakes of the debate

Walz's team has emphasized that the stakes of the debate are not that high, casting Vance as a "skilled debater" who will be challenging to go up against. "Debates and VP debates don't matter all that much in polling -- this will be one of many data points for voters," a source said about the significance of the debate.

Walz himself told Harris during an interview for the vice-presidential role that he was a "bad debater," according to a source with direct knowledge of the conversation.

Jacobs, the Minnesota strategist, claimed that could be expectation-setting on the Harris-Walz campaign's part.

"I don't think he's a bad debater. But I think you can see a couple flaws in some of his debating," Jacobs said, referencing a moment during a 2022 gubernatorial debate when Walz was asked to address crises like the violent protests in Minneapolis following George Floyd's murder and the pandemic. At the time, Walz appeared visibly irritated by his opponents' attacks.

"He kind of lost it. It was really, you know, for a guy who kind of presents as a calm and collected dude, he lost it," Jacobs said.

While the debate performances will be scrutinized, however, many voters said they are looking forward to the substance.

Cameron Hatton of Toledo, Ohio, is a Trump-Vance supporter. He said that Walz hasn't broken through to him, but he's looking forward to hearing him discuss the issues during the debate.

"I don't hear much about him. It's more about Kamala, kind of where I live and kind of what I follow. It's more JD Vance," Hatton told ABC News."Honestly, [I think Walz and Vance will] do better than our two candidates when it comes to like, actually speaking on policy."

Darbonne, the Harris supporter from Bloomfield Township, Michigan, said she hopes Walz addresses specific policies that may be appealing to moderate or conservative-leaning voters.

"A lot of the policies that Kamala has taken I think are bringing in more people who really thought she might be too liberal. And I know that that's very important, and I want them to address that," she said, saying Walz should highlight "what can be done, and not just, you know, all these terrible things that you should be afraid of -- and especially the border."

ABC News' Hannah Demissie contributed to this report.