Buttigieg ran for president in 2020
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Former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg met with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., as he contemplates wading into the 2026 Michigan Senate race.
The two met last week to discuss Buttigieg potentially running for outgoing Democratic Sen. Gary Peters' seat in the Trump-won swing state, a source familiar confirmed to Fox News Digital.
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Pete Buttigieg met with Chuck Schumer as he mulls a Senate bid in Michigan. (Reuters)
Schumer's office and a representative for Buttigieg did not immediately provide comment to Fox News Digital.
The meeting was first reported by Politico.
Buttigieg, 43, previously served as mayor of South Bend, Indiana, before launching a presidential bid in 2020. Fans affectionately referred to him as "Mayor Pete," and he has maintained popularity within the Democratic Party as one of its younger stars.
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United States Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg looks on prior to the Playoff First Round game between the Indiana Hoosiers and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Notre Dame Stadium on December 20, 2024, in South Bend, Indiana. (Michael Reaves/Getty Images))
The millennial Democrat was later chosen to serve as President Biden's transportation secretary.
Soon after Peters revealed in January he wouldn't seek re-election in the pivotal battleground state of Michigan, a source familiar with Buttigieg's thinking told Fox News Digital, "Pete is exploring all of his options on how he can be helpful and continue to serve."
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U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) speaks during Day 2 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 20, 2024. (REUTERS/Mike Segar)
"He's honored to be mentioned for this, and he's taking a serious look."
Peters announced his retirement to the Detroit News, telling the outlet, "I always thought there would be a time that I would step aside and pass the reins for the next generation. I also never saw service in Congress as something you do your whole life."
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Pete Buttigieg, US transportation secretary, visits a shipping terminal at the Honmoku pier in Yokohama, Japan, on Monday, June 19, 2023. (Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
"And that goes back to 2008 when I first won that House seat. I thought it would be for a matter of a few terms that I would serve, and then I would go back to private life," he added.
The Michigan Senate race is considered a "Toss Up" by top nonpartisan political handicapper the Cook Political Report.
Julia Johnson is a politics writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business, leading coverage of the U.S. Senate. She was previously a politics reporter at the Washington Examiner.
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