Iowa Caucus Voter Learns Pete Buttigieg Is Gay, Asks For Ballot Card Back & Says ‘He Better Read The Bible’
While Pete Buttigieg has yet to find out his fate in the Iowa caucus, there is at least one vote that he appeared to lose when an unidentified voter discovered that the former South Bend mayor was gay after she had signed up to support him. In a video that was shared on Twitter by Annabel Park, a woman was caught on film speaking with Nikki van den Heever, a caucus precinct captain in Cresco, Iowa. During the conversation, the woman discovered from van den Heever that Buttigieg is gay, something the candidate has made no effort to hide during his campaign.
“Are you saying that he has the same-sex partner? Pete?” the woman asked.
“Are you kidding?” she replied after van den Heever responded in the affirmative. “Then I don’t want anybody like that in the White House. So can I have my card back?”
Van den Heever offered to find out whether the woman would be able to retract her vote, as well as attempted to reason with her that Buttigieg’s sexual preference shouldn’t matter.
The woman responded by saying that Buttigieg should read the Bible, prompting a conversation on biblical references surrounding gay marriage.
“How come this is never been brought out before?” the woman then asked.
The video ends with van den Heever telling the woman about her own Christian beliefs.
“Love is love and we’re all human beings.”
#PeteButtigieg precinct captain in rural Iowa responds to a caucus-goer flipping out upon learning that he has a same-sex partner. It’s a masterclass in patience, persistence, and love. Bravo @nikkiheever #IowaCaucuses #cresco #howardcountyiowa pic.twitter.com/PhX7vRFh8X
— Annabel Park ?? (@annabelpark) February 4, 2020
The viral moment came as the results of the Iowa caucus have yet to be confirmed. Buttigieg caused some confusion in the immediate aftermath of voting when he declared himself the winner, despite none of the results from any of the precincts being available, according to a report by CNN. The former South Bend mayor was dragged on social media for the comments, as well as the disclosure that his campaign had donated to Shadow, the company that was behind the app that caused the delays in reporting the results. Throughout Monday evening, #MayorCheat was one of the top trending topics on Twitter.
When speaking to CNN’s John Berman about his decision to declare victory without any results, Buttigieg cited his own precinct organization.
“We have the momentum and stepped on that plane victorious on our way to New Hampshire.”
The New Hampshire primary will take place on February 11, 2020. As of publishing, the Iowa Democratic Party has said results from the caucus should begin to come out around 5 p.m. Eastern time on Tuesday.
