Black mayor of racially diverse Iowa city backs Buttigieg

Democratic presidential candidate former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg greets members of the audience at a campaign stop at Iowa State University, Monday, Jan. 13, 2020, in Aimes, Iowa. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

The black mayor of Iowa’s most racially diverse city in endorsing Pete Buttigieg for president.

The endorsement by Waterloo Mayor Quentin Hart gives the former South Bend mayor a boost as he struggles to attract voters of color. Hart told The Associated Press he was supporting Buttigieg in part for what he called the Democrat’s effort to address racial economic disparity in South Bend.

The Buttigieg campaign hopes Hart’s endorsement will help not only inoculate Buttigieg from the stubborn notion he cannot win black support but also potentially resonate beyond majority-white Iowa, as Buttigieg winds his way through the Democratic primary campaign.