Joe Biden nominates Pete Buttingieg as Transportation Secretary

Washington, Dec 15 (AFP/APP): US President-elect Joe Biden will nominate former campaign rival Pete Buttigieg to be transportation secretary, US media reported Tuesday, a move that would make him the first openly gay member of a presidential cabinet.

Buttigieg, the former mayor of a small town in Indiana, enjoyed a meteoric political rise as he sought the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination. The 38-year-old Buttigieg mounted a strong challenge to Biden and other Democratic hopefuls before eventually dropping out of the race in March 2020 and endorsing the former vice president.

The Harvard- and Oxford-educated Buttigieg was also the first openly gay person to mount a major presidential campaign in the United States. He would have to be confirmed by the Senate to join Biden’s Cabinet as transportation secretary. His husband, Chasten Buttigieg, is a drama teacher.

Pete Buttigieg served as the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, from 2012-2020 and put his civic duties on hold in 2014 to deploy as a US Navy intelligence officer in Afghanistan.

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