- Thu October 1, 2026 at 8:00 pm
Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation (2021–2025), Pete Buttigieg led federal transportation policy during implementation of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. A candidate for the Democratic nomination for President in 2020, his historic campaign won the Iowa caucuses and finished second in the New Hampshire primary. He previously served two terms as mayor of South Bend, Indiana.
Nominated by President Biden as Secretary of Transportation in 2020 and confirmed at age 38, he was the youngest member of the Biden administration’s Cabinet and the youngest person ever to serve as Secretary of Transportation.
As Secretary, Buttigieg launched more than seventy thousand infrastructure projects across the country, including investments in roads, bridges, ports, and rail. He advanced transportation safety and technology initiatives, expanded airline passenger protections, and addressed supply chain disruptions during the COVID-19 recovery. He also oversaw the Department’s response to major national crises, including the Colonial Pipeline cyberattack and the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge.
Elected mayor of South Bend at age 29, Buttigieg led the city to its strongest period of economic and population growth in decades. He also served for seven years in the U.S. Navy Reserve as a naval intelligence officer, taking a leave of absence from his role as mayor in 2014 to deploy to Afghanistan. In Afghanistan, he served in a counterterrorism mission targeting terrorist financing networks. He was awarded the Joint Service Commendation Medal.
In addition to his public service, Buttigieg is the author of Trust: America’s Best Chance, and Shortest Way Home: One Mayor’s Challenge and a Model for America’s Future.
Buttigieg holds degrees in history and literature from Harvard University and studied philosophy, politics, and economics at Oxford, where he was a Rhodes Scholar. Drawing on experience in local, military, and federal leadership, he brings a forward-looking and hopeful perspective on America’s future.