Industry groups hopeful transportation secretary nominee Mayor Buttigieg understands rural and urban needs.
President-elect Joe Biden nominated former mayor of South Bend, Ind., Pete Buttigieg, to be secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation, drawing hopeful optimism that if confirmed rural and urban interests can be heard under his watch.
Buttigieg served as the 32nd mayor of South Bend for eight years. He secured $200 million in private investment in downtown South Bend, sparking citywide job growth and facilitating innovative public-private partnerships to improve the city’s transportation. In addition to his service as mayor, Buttigieg was an intelligence officer in the United States Navy Reserve who was deployed to Afghanistan in 2014, eventually earning the rank of Lieutenant.