The state’s conservative group Action 4 Liberty runs a stand at the Minnesota State Fair against Democratic Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. Dana Ferguson/MPR Hide caption
Toggle caption Dana Ferguson/MPR
FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn. — Strange. That’s a description Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has often used to describe Republicans, even before he became Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate.
The word “weird” is inescapable in this year’s presidential campaign. It’s been used in speeches, printed on T-shirts and shared as a meme across the internet. Both Republicans and Democrats have laid claim to the word.
And in Minnesota, the term can be loaded with meaning.
So we went to the Minnesota State Fair and talked to Minnesotans about how the word sounds different here.
Inside the fair’s horticulture building, Ashley Greenwood and Sarah Black lined up with dozens of other fairgoers to view a gallery of crop art, with mosaic-like designs, sometimes made with tens of thousands of seeds, beans and other plant material.
They shuffled past pictures of “The Very Hungry Caterpillar,” a Lego astronaut and a lake full of fish, before pausing in front of drawings of Republican candidate U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance and former President Donald Trump.
Above it is a quote that the article cites as saying by Waltz: “These people are weird.”
Walz’s supporters say the “kook” label has stuck in the Midwest because it carries more weight there.
The Minnesota State Fair features several works of crop art, designs made from seeds, beans and other plants. Political themes are popular among crop artists, especially in 2024. Dana Ferguson/MPR News Hide caption
Toggle caption Dana Ferguson/MPR News
Minnesota Weirdo
“It’s very complicated language,” said Black, a middle school geography teacher in Minneapolis. “It’s a polite Midwestern way of saying, ‘This is weird,’ right? I took that to mean they’re saying this is weird without saying it explicitly.”
For Jill Carey, those words mean a lot.
“When you’re a kid and kids on the playground say, ‘You’re weird,’ it makes you feel really bad inside,” Carrie says.
As she pored over the crop art design, Carey said the depiction of Vance and Trump got her thinking.
“I think the nice Minnesota part of me doesn’t want to make anyone feel bad,” she says, but it’s important to ask yourself, “Do my actions meet standards of respect and dignity for others?”
Megan Yoshida says the strange label has stuck because it’s a simplification of how many people feel about former President Trump.
“They’re weird, they’re different, they’re not like us. We’re all just like regular people trying to make a living in Minnesota,” Yoshida said. “I don’t think you see that a lot in politics.”
Jill Carey looks at crop art designs in the Horticultural Hall at the Minnesota State Fair on Friday, Aug. 23. Dana Ferguson/MPR News, hide caption
Toggle caption Dana Ferguson/MPR News
Who are you calling “weird”?
At a nearby booth, where visitors were spinning a wheel decorated with Waltz’s face, Jesse Smith is a member of Action 4 Liberty, a conservative Minnesota group that’s organizing an exhibit themed around “Never Waltz.”
Smith said his goal was to point out to people here that Waltz, not Trump or Vance, is the odd one out.
“It’s ironic. He’s throwing stones at a glass house,” Smith said. “I think he’s the one who’s trying to put tampons in the men’s room. If there’s anybody who’s weird, it’s him.”
Smith is referring to legislation signed by Gov. Walz that provides funding for installing menstrual products in public school restrooms.
Nearby, Jim Kelly holds a fan of “Never Waltz,” a conservative-leaning construction worker who says the “weird” label may be offensive to many Americans like him.
“You’re calling half of our members or half of our people eccentric or deplorable or weird, whichever it is, it’s a pretty big percentage,” Kelly said. “We are the United States of America, not divided states of America.”
Behind him, people just keep spinning the roulette, hoping they might win a shirt or a fan.
