Pete Buttigieg’s presidential campaign is over, and it’s not hard to understand why.
Hardly anyone knew the 38-year-old former South Bend, Indiana, mayor before he launched his bid for the White House. But he adapted to the spotlight quickly, using his youth and charisma as leverage against his older, more established opponents. And it worked for a little while: He staged an impressive upset in Iowa’s primary, but his results began to dwindle thereafter.
The problem was that Buttigieg’s lack of bigger experience and his inability to communicate with minority voters created obstacles he could not overcome. His poll numbers among African Americans remained dismal throughout his campaign. And in Nevada, Buttigieg struggled to win Hispanic voters. Without votes from minorities, Buttigieg knew his campaign was hopeless to gain a majority.
Inexperience isn’t always a bad thing — former President Barack Obama wasn’t exactly an experienced politician either — but Buttigieg had little else to his name. His agenda was too similar to the other moderates’ agendas, such as Joe Biden and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar. And when voters were given a choice between the former vice president, an experienced senator, and a former mayor who struggled to keep his city afloat, the choice made itself.
With that said, Buttigieg’s decision to drop out now, just two days before Super Tuesday, is a bit of a surprise. He might not have performed well in South Carolina’s primary this weekend, but no one expected him to. And if he had remained in the race until after Super Tuesday, he would undoubtedly have walked away with a good number of delegates, according to exit polls from early voters. It’s unlikely Buttigieg would have won the Democratic nomination, but he still had a better chance than Klobuchar or Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
So the question is: Why drop out now? It seems likely that one of the other leading candidates offered Buttigieg some sort of deal. Perhaps that’s a cabinet position or even a spot as a running mate. Regardless, it’s good Buttigieg got out now. He would have had to do so eventually. For the sake of his political future, sooner is always better than later.
