An appearance by Pete Buttigieg on Friday morning on New Hampshire talk radio is fueling ongoing speculation that the U.S. Secretary of Transportation in President Biden’s administration may be mulling another White House run in 2028.
Buttigieg, a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate who is considered a potential contender for the next nomination race, has made numerous radio appearances across the country during his four years steering the Department of Transportation, including a bunch in New Hampshire, which prides itself on being the first-in-the-nation presidential primary state.
But with President-elect Trump a month away from returning to the White House, and Democrats scrambling in the wake of November’s election setbacks to find a path out of the political wilderness, Buttigieg’s latest radio appearance in New Hampshire is grabbing increased attention as the extremely early preseason moves in the party’s 2028 presidential primary race will soon start.
And the guest segment by Buttigieg on the statewide morning news-talk radio program “New Hampshire Today” is bound to spark more 2028 speculation.
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Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg speaks on Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center, in Chicago, Illinois, on August 21, 2024. (REUTERS/Mike Segar)
“The only thing I’m sure is next is a little vacation,” Buttigieg said when asked by host Chris Ryan about his plans once his tenure as transportation secretary sunsets on Jan. 20.
Buttigieg said he and his spouse, Chasten, “are ready to spend a little time together. I’m ready to be around our three-year-old twins a little more, and I’m determined not to make any life decisions too quickly in the new year.”
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“But I will find ways to make myself useful, and maybe that’s running for office, and maybe that’s not. I’ll take the next few weeks and months to work through that,” Buttigieg shared.
And he emphasized that “I know what I care about. I care about how communities, like the place where I grew up, find a better future. I care about how to make sure technology makes us all better off and not worse off. I care about how the infrastructure issues and opportunities I’ve worked on can develop. I care about public service. I care about our democracy, and I will find ways to work on that, whatever shape that might take.”
President Joe Biden speaks alongside Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg (left) during a briefing on Hurricane Helene response and recovery efforts, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on October 1, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)
Buttigieg, a former naval intelligence officer who deployed to the war in Afghanistan and who served eight years as mayor of South Bend, Indiana, was a longshot when he launched his 2020 presidential campaign.
But his campaign caught fire, and he narrowly edged Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont to win the Iowa caucuses before coming in close second to Sanders in the New Hampshire presidential primary. But Buttigieg, along with the rest of the Democratic field, dropped out of the race and endorsed Biden as the former vice president won the South Carolina primary in a landslide, swept the Super Tuesday contests and eventually clinched the nomination before winning the White House.
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During his tenure as Secretary of Transportation, Buttigieg has made a handful of official visits to New Hampshire, most recently earlier this year. And two years ago, in a political trip, he headlined the New Hampshire Democratic Party’s major autumn fundraising gala.
Asked in the interview whether he’ll be returning to the Granite State in the near future, he quipped, “I’m sure I’ll turn up before too long.”
Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg addresses the New Hampshire Democratic Party’s Eleanor Roosevelt Dinner, which is the state party’s largest annual fundraising event, on Sept. 24, 2022, in Manchester, N.H. (New Hampshire Democratic Party)
Buttigieg, in recent years, has also made regular appearances on the Fox News Channel to highlight the Biden administration’s efforts. This year, he served as a high-profile surrogate on Fox News and elsewhere across the media landscape for Biden, and later for Vice President Kamala Harris, on the campaign trail.
After his 2020 presidential campaign, Buttiegieg moved from red-state Indiana to neighboring Michigan, which is a key battleground, and now calls Traverse City, Michigan, home.
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In recent weeks, Buttigieg has fielded calls by some Michigan Democrats urging him to consider a 2026 run for governor, to succeed Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who is term-limited.
“I haven’t made any decisions about, big decisions about my future,” Buttigieg told reporters earlier this month in Detroit, in a line that he would repeat in this week’s New Hampshire radio interview.
