Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg suggested Monday that he would be open to being Vice President Harris’s running mate in the White House race but noted they are not currently at that stage.
When asked in an interview on MSNBC whether he would serve as Harris’s vice president if she asked, Buttigieg said, “She’s going to make that decision.”
“She’s going to do it based on what’s best for the country, best for the party and best for the ticket. I will do everything in my power to make sure that she is the next president,” he continued, adding he is “excited” to go out on the campaign trail when the opportunity arises.
MSNBC anchor Rachel Maddow asked him a follow-up question: “But if she asked, are you saying you wouldn’t say no?”
“Sure. We’re just not in that mode right now. You know, we’re on the second day since the president made his decision, and I trust her,” Buttigieg responded, referring to President Biden’s decision to step aside from the 2024 White House race.
“By the way, few people in the country know more about the vice presidency and about the weight of that decision than she does,” he added. “I very much trust her to make a choice, that makes sense to her, that is right for the party, and that’s right for the country.”
Buttigieg, who ran for president against Biden and Harris in 2020, has been floated as a potential running mate for Harris, with speculation ramping up this week following Biden’s withdrawal from the race and subsequent endorsement of the vice president to run in his place.
Scores of Democrats quickly endorsed Harris, who crossed the threshold to secure the Democratic presidential nomination, receiving more than 1,968 delegate endorsements less than two days after Biden dropped out of the race.
Buttigieg was the mayor of South Bend, Ind., before serving in the Biden administration and has developed an enormous following under the nickname “Mayor Pete.” His popularity has prompted questions about a future presidential run and whether he could join Harris on a 2024 ticket.
Speaking on MSNBC, Buttigieg noted Harris has “consistency” with Biden after working together in the White House, but she is a “different messenger, a different leader.”
“She represents a different style,” he said. “We heard her talk about how, in her background as a prosecutor, part of what she did was defend the public from people who ran scams at for-profit universities, people who were responsible for sexual assaults, in other words, people like Donald Trump.”
“And at the same time, we heard this positive vision, this really energizing vision,” the Transportation secretary added. “You could see it.”