(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is done with identity politics, despite using his sexual orientation to propel himself to the national stage in 2020.
Buttigieg made clear he wanted the Democratic Party to abandon identity politics in a Friday interview with the All-In Podcast, directly addressing Kamala Harris’s own admission that she dismissed him as a potential running mate in 2024 because he is gay.
“Let’s just say, I would love for identity to play a less central role in the politics of our country and the politics of my party,” Buttigieg said. “And not just because I might’ve been passed over for an opportunity, but just because I think it has really dominated so many people’s thinking in a way that makes it harder for us to build a message across identities.”
Expanding on his answer, Buttigieg said that identity politics has hindered the Democratic Party’s ability to “get through.”
He added, “I don’t think it makes sense to pretend that identity doesn’t matter. I don’t think it makes sense to pretend to be colorblind. I also don’t think it makes sense to allow that to explain everything, which is one of the habits that’s formed, I think definitely on my party’s far left, that made it harder for us to get through.”
P ete Buttigieg: “I would love for identity to play less of a central role” in the Democratic Party@chamath asked @PeteButtigieg to reflect on the role of identity politics in the Democratic Party in the wake of Kamala Harris saying she didn't pick him as a running mate because… pic.twitter.com/8joiFb6DEW
— The All-In Podcast (@theallinpod) October 30, 2025
Buttigieg’s message follows the Democratic Party’s failure to secure major elections after embracing identity politics both in 2016 and 2024, nominating two women — Hillary Clinton and Kamala Harris — and losing both elections.
Both Clinton and Harris used their gender and race (in Harris’s case) as tools to propel themselves to the national stage. Both efforts failed miserably.
Buttigieg, a gay man and former South Bend mayor, touted his sexual orientation to position himself as the future of the Democratic Party amid his failed presidential bid in 2020.
At the Democratic National Convention, for instance, Buttigieg highlighted his experience as a gay man serving in the military.
“Just over 10 years ago, I joined the military, where firing me because of who I am wasn’t just possible, it was policy. Now in 2020, it’s unlawful in America to fire somebody because of who they are or who they love,” he said.
Buttigieg later doubled down on his identity as he was nominated to serve as Transportation Secretary under the Biden administration.
