After reaching third place in Iowa polls, gay Presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg has placed similarly in a poll from Change Research among Democrat primary voters nationwide.
Buttigieg placed third in a poll of 2,518 Democrats likely to vote in the primary elections nationwide, receiving 17 percent of their support.
He trails closely behind established politicians Joe Biden, at a slim lead of 21 percent, and Bernie Sanders, who received 20 percent support. The mayor from Indiana was distantly followed by Texas politician Beto O’Rourke (9 percent), Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren (8 percent), California senator Kamala Harris (7 percent), Georgia’s own Stacey Abrams (4 percent), and New Jersey senator Cory Booker (4 percent). All other potential candidates received less than 2 percent support.
Buttigieg has dramatically jumped in popularity; in the last nationwide poll Change Research conducted in March, he only garnered 2 percent support. In contrast, Biden seriously dropped in support, going from 36 percent to 21 percent.
Among those who have officially announced their run for President – with Joe Biden and Stacey Abrams eliminated – Buttigieg polled second with 21 percent after Sanders with 26 percent.
Buttigieg is the first openly gay politician to run for President under a major party. He has been in the news recently for publicly opposing Vice President Mike Pence’s beliefs on gay marriage and support of President Donald Trump. Buttigieg has been largely successful, despite his limited resume as mayor of South Bend, Indiana; his campaign raised $7 million in its first quarter of fundraising.