Washington D.C
CNN
—
Transport Minister Pete Buttigieg said on Sunday, Mr will not run for the open US Senate seat in Michigan in 2024, in his most direct answer to date ruled out a potential bid.
“No,” Buttigieg said when asked by CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union” if he would find a way to succeed retired Democratic Senator Debbie Stabenow.
Buttigieg previously indicated that he would do not pursue the seaton the grounds that he’s currently focused on his job in President Joe Biden’s Cabinet, but hasn’t ruled it out entirely.
“I plan to vote in that election as a resident of Michigan, but look, first of all, I think, the job that I have is the best job in the federal government,” he said. told Tapper on Sunday.
“This job takes up 110% of my time and I obviously serve to the satisfaction of the president. But as long as he is willing to let me continue to do this work, then I am proud to be a part of this team,” added Buttigieg.
Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, last year moved to Michigan, where his husband’s parents, Chasten, live.
Democrats are defending 23 of 34 Senate seats in next year’s vote, including three in states that have backed former President Donald Trump by at least eight points in 2020: West Virginia, Montana and Ohio .
Besides Michigan, the party is also defending seats in other battleground states such as Arizona, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Potential Democratic candidates for Stabenow’s seat include Representatives Elissa Slotkin and Debbie Dingell, and State Senator Mallory McMorrow, who drew national attention last year in a speech. protest against anti-LGBTQ attacks from a Republican colleague.
