FREEPORT, Maine — Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who was reportedly vetted as a potential running mate for Vice President Kamala Harris, was touring construction sites in Maine on Tuesday just after Harris picked Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
Buttigieg arrived in Freeport to view two bridge replacement projects on Interstate 295 that are funded in part by the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Reporters have kept an eye on him over the last few days due to his role in the field of vice presidential contenders that was finally whittled down to Walz and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, the runner up.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s press office tried to dissuade the Maine media from asking about electoral issues in an advisory, noting the Hatch Act bars federal officials from partisan political activity while on the clock. It was an obvious nod to what was on the minds of most reporters and guests around Buttigieg’s visit.
Flanked by U.S. Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, and Rep. Chellie Pingree, a Democrat from Maine’s 1st District, Buttigieg told reporters Walz was a “fantastic partner” for his agency, saying he otherwise could not talk about the Harris campaign or his political future.
“[Walz] is a great leader who understands the importance of infrastructure,” Buttigieg added while standing on one of two Freeport bridges over I-295 that are expected to see their $26.5 million restoration projects wrap by late 2025.
President Joe Biden kicked off the upheaval at the top of the Democratic ticket by announcing last month he would not seek reelection following a disastrous June debate against former President Donald Trump. Harris, 59, quickly took over Biden’s campaign and would become the first woman to serve as president if she defeats the 78-year-old Republican in November.
Buttigieg, 42, was a presidential candidate himself in 2020 after quickly gaining a national profile as the mayor of South Bend, Indiana. Maine is the 50th state he has visited as transportation secretary after he was appointed to the role at the start of Biden’s tenure in 2021.
On Wednesday, Buttigieg will visit Portland with Pingree, Gov. Janet Mills and other leaders to highlight federal investments to improve the International Marine Terminal and swing out to the Portland neighborhood of East Deering for another tour.
The first poll of Maine voters released last month after Biden opted out of the reelection race had Harris ahead of Trump by eight percentage points. The last Republican presidential candidate to win Maine was former President George H.W. Bush in 1988, though Trump earned one of its four electors in both 2016 and 2020 by carrying the rural 2nd District.
Walz, 60, a former Army National Guard member and educator, served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2007 to 2019, when he became governor of Minnesota.
Maine Democrats quickly praised Walz’s selection. Pingree, who overlapped with Walz in Congress, said as “a rural Minnesotan, he understands the challenges Mainers are facing and shares our commonsense values.” Mills called him a friend who will make an outstanding vice president and described him in a tweet as a “fighter for the American people.”
U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, a Democrat representing Maine’s swing 2nd District who faces a nationally watched reelection battle in November, did not immediately comment Tuesday on Walz. A spokesperson said Golden was canoeing the Allagash Wilderness Waterway with his parents while Congress is on an August recess.
Golden, who has not yet committed to supporting Harris in November, will not attend the Democratic National Convention as a superdelegate later this month and abstained from a virtual delegate vote Monday that officially made Harris the party’s presidential nominee.
For all the national news occurring Tuesday, Buttigieg was content to discuss transportation funding. After a woman yelled “go Pete” from a passing car, he said Mainers had been “incredibly welcoming.”
Buttigieg also got distracted while answering one question by L.L. Bean’s Bootmobile driving across the nearby bridge.
“L.L. Bean’s right down the road,” King informed Buttigieg.
“We don’t have that where I come from,” Buttigieg replied.
