Purported video of Tim Walz dancing is altered

"VP candidate Walz of the 'free world.' OMFG..... Help us," says text over a September 4, 2024 TikTok video that also spread on X.

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Screenshot from X taken September 5, 2024

The clip appears to show Walz wearing a red cowboy hat and a two-piece black leather outfit while grooving to Beyoncé's song "Texas Hold 'Em."

Similar posts rocketed across TikTok, X and other platforms, such as YouTube, as the presidential race between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump heats up roughly two months before Election Day.

Walz has faced a barrage of false attacks online since Harris tapped him as her running mate in August -- including a separate video that was doctored to edit his face onto footage of another man dancing.

The most recent clip is also manipulated.

Commenters on social media pointed out that the footage is pulled from an Instagram video shared February 19 (archived here). The caption and hashtags indicate it was filmed aboard a cruise ship.

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Screenshot from Instagram taken September 6, 2024

The man in the original shot is not Walz, but Matthew Krumpe, a dancer and drag artist who performs under the name Linda Recessionista.

The version spreading online was altered to include Walz's face.

"It is a doctored version of my video," Krumpe told AFP in a September 5 Instagram direct message. "And I'm really not happy with it, as I am being used as political fodder to spread falsehoods."

Krumpe later posted an Instagram story alerting his followers to the clip's misuse.

"This video is yet again trending because a bunch of maga republicans put @timwalz face on mine and tried to make some insinuation that he was a big flaming dancing gay," he wrote. "Never had that on my 2024 bingo card."

AFP contacted the Harris-Walz campaign for comment, but no response was forthcoming.

AFP has debunked other misinformation about US politics here.