Out and proud: Pete Buttigieg gets Cabinet nomination in huge milestone for USA's LGBT+ community
By ITV News Washington Producer Sophie Alexander
Pete Buttigieg is set to become the first ever openly LGBT+ member of a United States President’s Cabinet approved by the Senate.
President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will announce Buttigieg as the nomination for Transportation Secretary on Wednesday.
This milestone is not one to be overlooked.
Never has an openly gay candidate been so prominent in a US election before.
Mayor Pete, as he was known to voters, of South Bend, Indiana, stood on stage next to Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Bernie Sanders and others, as one of the Democratic nominees for President.
His husband, Chasten, a teacher, was present at many events and millions saw them holding hands, arms around each other, or engaged in a quick kiss following a debate or town hall discussion.
This was a first for the US, to see two happily married, Christian men, being tactile with each other in the political spotlight. It raised the question over and over again: was America ready for its first gay President?
Buttigieg’s response to that: “I’m not running to be the gay President of the United States, or the President of the gay United States. I’m out here to serve everybody.”
Mayor Pete, the Harvard and University of Oxford graduate, the Navy veteran, the pianist, the ardent Christian, and the speaker of eight languages, always tried to show to America he was more than just a gay man.
After dropping out of the Democratic race in March he endorsed Biden, who in turn compared him to his son Beau, who served a tour of Afghanistan and died of brain cancer aged 46.
At the time, Biden said: “I promise you, you’re going to end up, over your lifetime, seeing a hell of a lot more of Pete than you are of me.”
And now, his former rival has rewarded him with a top position in his cabinet in an administration expected to rebuild the nation’s infrastructure and economy and address the climate emergency.
This platform could elevate Buttigieg to once again run for President in 2028 or 2032, he is after all only 38-years-old.
The issues Buttigieg faced in the race to be Democratic candidate could be alleviated by this position in the cabinet. He was ‘too inexperienced’ for the White House but this role could give him the opportunity to make a lasting impression on those in Washington and voters around the country.
Buttigieg also fell flat with African American voters, who showed little enthusiasm for him and criticised his handling of the shooting of a black man in South Bend and his lack of urgency or understanding of systemic inequities faced by the black population in Indiana.
Transportation Secretary could provide Buttigieg with the chance to right those wrongs, or at least show the black community he is listening in poorer neighbourhoods where public transportation is relied on more than in wealthier areas.
Historically, superhighways have been built in the middle of African American neighbourhoods, blighting communities. Buttigieg needs to acknowledge this and come up with a solution.
His candidacy represented an evolution in American politics and transformed what was possible for an LGBT+ candidate.
In 2020 more than 1,000 LGBT+ candidates ran for office and, as of this week, 334 of the 782 known general election candidates won their November races, according to data compiled by the LGBTQ Victory Fund.
That equates to 43% of LGBT+ candidates winning their race, with lesbians the most likely to triumph at the ballot box. Sarah McBride won her race in Delaware to become the first transgender person ever elected to State Senate.
The fight for LGBT+ representation is far from over, yet Buttigieg’s nomination goes a huge way in the fight for parity.
Is America ready for its first openly gay President? Possibly. And in 2028 we could well be having this conversation again.
Has America already treated an openly gay Presidential candidate with seriousness and respect? Yes.