Can Tim Walz's Midwestern charm work in Michigan?

Tim Walz has been cultivating a public image around being the dad-next-door.

Walz will take on Ohio Sen. JD Vance in New York City during a vice presidential debate on Tuesday .

For many Republicans , Walz is just another part of Kamala Harris' campaign and doesn't speak for working-class voters.

In Michigan , a state GOP spokeswoman recently called the Minnesota governor "a Midwesterner who hates the Midwest ".

John Nagy said he thought it was telling that Harris picked Walz for a running mate over other politicians, like Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro .

Nagy , like Walz , is a hunter and veteran, said Walz 's governing approach in Minnesota proves that he is against the Midwestern morals he claims are so important.

Walz has received backlash for changing his stance on guns after the Las Vegas massacre.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's character traits are among the things that appeal to Johnny Williams , a 71-year-old dishwasher with a thick Southern accent.

Williams said he isn't concerned about whether nice-guy Walz could make it through the presidential campaign and all the way to Washington , D.C. "He'll survive," he said. "What goes around comes around.".