Buttigieg Name Gains Traction, Even If You Can't Pronounce It

Pete Buttigieg seems to be making an impression on voters and the Democratic Party, and not just because of the entertaining attempts to pronounce his last name. A poll of likely Democratic caucus voters in Iowa released Sunday put the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, in third place, behind Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders, reports the Hill. And the AP reports that Buttigieg, the only gay candidate either in the race or exploring a run, is raising more money than ever and doubling the size of his staff because of growing turnouts at campaign stops. Related coverage:

• The name: His name confuses people. But it doesn't have to. The Washington Post compiled a video of anchors butchering "Buttigieg." There's a right way, an almost right way, and many wrong ways, per a guide at The Cut. "Boot-a-judge" and "Buddha-judge" work. A Colbert producer even suggests a musical way to remember it. When in doubt, the candidate himself suggests calling him "Mayor Pete," which is how South Bend knows him. Listen to Buttigieg himself say it in this video.
• His age: His candidacy faces plenty of challenges. FiveThirtyEight assesses them, along with potential counterarguments, and lays out the possibilities. Young people are one place he could start. Even if he fails to become the nation's youngest president ever—he's 37—he could become well-known enough to be a future possibility.

• Faith, sexuality: On religion as well as community, he has challenged norms among politicians, including the notion that “the only way a religious person could enter politics is through the prism of the religious right." A married gay man, Buttigieg (an Episcopalian) could change the way candidates address faith—in a good way, E.J. Dionne Jr. writes in the Washington Post.
• Campaign theme: He emphasizes building trust between communities and government, including between black people and police, in a way Jessica Floyd at Ebony found intelligent and thoughtful. And he stresses inclusion. He cites his reelection as mayor with more than 80% of the vote as evidence that he succeeds. Floyd has a Q&A with him.
• Bio: After growing up in South Bend, the son of Notre Dame professors, he went to Harvard and became a Rhodes Scholar, per this Indy Star primer. After Oxford, he worked for a global consultant firm, then returned home to be elected mayor. While in office, he volunteered for active duty in Afghanistan; he received the Joint Service Commendation Medal for counterterrorism work. A post at COED has a quick look at political positions: He backs tighter gun laws and raising the minimum wage and taxes for the wealthy.
• Beyond English: He speaks French, Spanish, Italian, Maltese, Arabic, Dari, and Norwegian, reports the BBC. He says he learned Norwegian so he could read the work of novelist Erlend Loem, and he's not bluffing: Buttigieg answered a question in Norwegian the other day, because it was asked in Norwegian. See the video here.
• Old prediction: It may seem like Buttigieg came out of nowhere to run for president, but in this 2016 interview with the New Yorker, Barack Obama said to keep an eye on him.

(More Pete Buttigieg stories.)