MOSCOW (Sputnik) — His father was a welder, and his mother taught home economics.
Kaine received his B.A. in economics from the University of Missouri in 1979, and graduated from Harvard Law School in 1983. He took a year off from Harvard Law School to travel to Honduras where he worked as a catholic missionary and teacher.
In 1987, Kaine began lecturing at the University of Richmond.
In 1994, he was elected to the Richmond city council. He went on to serve as Mayor of Richmond in 1998-2001.
Kaine was Lieutenant Governor of Virginia in 2002-2006, then Governor of Virginia in 2006-2010.
In 2009-2011, he served as Chair of the Democratic National Committee.
In 2012, Kaine was elected to the Senate, where he served on the Armed Services Committee, the Budget Committee, the Foreign Relations Committee and the Special Committee on Aging.
On July 23, 2016, Democratic presidential nominee Hilary Clinton announced Tim Kaine as her running mate.
The Democratic Party Convention approved his nomination on July 27, 2016.
Kaine officially accepted the nomination on July 28, 2016.
Kaine was one of the first governors to endorse Barack Obama during the 2008 presidential election.
Tim Kaine supports action against global climate change, which is one of the cornerstones of the Democratic policy. A devout Catholic who is personally opposed to abortion, Kaine (unlike most Republicans) does not support anti-abortion laws. Kaine also supports gay marriage, gender equality and workers’ rights. He is in favor of stricter gun control. On foreign policy, he is a centrist and supports Obama. Kaine is for normalizing relations with Cuba and supports the Iran nuclear deal. He generally agrees with the Obama administration on Afghanistan, believing it is important to draw down American troops as the country takes responsibility for its own security. Kaine is more moderate on Russia than Clinton. Tim Kaine is married with three children.