An Iowa woman tried to retract her support from Pete Buttigieg after learning he's gay

Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP/Getty Images

South Bend Mayor and Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg (L) speaks beside husband Chasten Glezman at the West Side Democratic Club during a Dyngus Day celebration event on Monday, April 22, 2019 in South Bend, Indiana.

• An Iowa caucusgoer tried to retract her support for Pete Buttigieg after learning he was married to a man.
• Buttigieg came out of the closet in 2015 and married his husband, Chasten, in June 2018.
• "He better read the Bible," the woman, who asked for her preference card back, said in a video that went viral.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

A caucusgoer in Iowa retracted her support for Democratic candidate Pete Buttigieg, asking if she could take her preference card back after learning that he was in a same-sex relationship.

The interaction occurred between two women in the middle of a caucus event Monday night in a video that went viral.

In the video, one woman wears a pin that labeled her a "precinct captain" for the Buttigieg campaign. The other woman wears a Buttiegig sticker and a bright green pin for the campaign of Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar.

"So, are you saying that he has a same-sex partner?" the second woman asked.

"Yes," the Buttigieg organizer said.

"Well then I don't want anybody like that in the White House, the woman said before asking if she could get her card back.

According to McClatchy, organizers distribute preference cards out to the caucusgoers so that the organizers can determine the viability of a candidate. The woman presumably asked for her card back so she could change her preference for another candidate.

In the video, the Buttigieg organizer seems to want to find out if she can help the other caucus-goer revise her support. But she also suggests that she stick with Buttigieg, saying that his sexual orientation "shouldn't really matter."

"Well, he better read the Bible," the woman responds.

The woman also asked why Buttigieg, a former Indiana mayor who has been open about his position as the first major openly gay candidate for president, hasn't discussed his sexuality more. She said she had never heard that he was gay.

"It's common knowledge," the Buttigieg organizer says.

The supporter of the 38-year-old former mayor told the woman it shouldn't matter if a candidate is a man, a woman, gay, or straight. She urged the woman to caucus based on whether she agreed with what the former mayor stands for.

"It all just went right down the toilet is where it all just went," the woman says.

Buttigieg married his husband, Chasten, a high school drama teacher, in June 2018, a few years after they began dating in 2015. Chasten Buttigieg would be the nation's first "first gentleman" if his husband is elected, and he said he would use his platform to reform public schools.

Buttigieg came out as gay in 2015, when he 33 years old, according to the New York Times.

It's not clear if the caucus-goer was able to change her selection Monday night.

The Buttigieg campaign did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

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