Buttigieg jokes on whether Buchanan was first gay president: ‘My gaydar is not great to begin with’

Presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg didn’t take a position on speculation that James Buchanan was the nation’s first gay president in a Wednesday interview.

If elected, Buttigieg would be the first openly gay president.

The South Bend, Ind., mayor was asked in an interview with BuzzFeed’s AM2DM about a Washington Post column that speculated on whether Buchanan, who held office from 1857 to 1861, was gay.

The column pointed to his cohabitation with William Rufus King, a Southerner who many historians believe influenced the Pennsylvanian president’s opposition to abolishing slavery.

{mosads}“My gaydar is not great to begin with and it definitely doesn’t work over long stretches of time, so I think we’ll have to let the historians figure that one out,” Buttigieg said.

Mayor @PeteButtigieg when asked about James Buchanan being the first gay president: “My gaydar is not great to begin with and definitely doesn’t work over long stretches of time.” pic.twitter.com/xx7pJRCjXT

— AM2DM by BuzzFeed News (@AM2DM) March 27, 2019

Recent polling has shown Buttigieg slowly building his support among a field of candidates that includes numerous candidates with experience in federal office. An Emerson poll this weekend found him in third place among candidates in Iowa, behind former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).

The 37-year-old mayor has raised his national profile with a series of viral moments, including answering a question from a reporter in Norwegian at a South Carolina event.