By Sarah Ferris and Shania Shelton, CNN

(CNN) — Pete Buttigieg announced Thursday he will not run for Michigan’s governorship or the state’s open US Senate seat in 2026, setting up a potential presidential bid in 2028.

“I care deeply about who Michigan will elect as Governor and send to the U.S. Senate next year, but I have decided against competing in either race. I remain enthusiastic about helping candidates who share our values - and who understand that in this moment, leadership means not only opposing today’s cruel chaos, but also presenting a vision of a better alternative,” Buttigieg said in an X post.

Buttigieg called fellow Michigan Democrats on Thursday morning to tell them of his decision, which was first reported by Politico.

A source familiar with Buttigieg’s thinking said his decision sets him up in the strongest possible position to run for president in 2028. The source said running for governor or Senate in 2026 would have taken that option off the table.

Following the retirement announcement by Democratic Sen. Gary Peters in late January, an adviser to Buttigieg told CNN he was taking a “serious look” at a Senate campaign.

Buttigieg said he “thought seriously” about running for the governorship – Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who is also seen as a potential 2028 contender, is term-limited – as well as the Senate seat after being encouraged by leaders in Michigan and having conversations with family, friends and officials.

“I considered what I could bring to the race compared to other likely candidates, and what running and serving would mean compared to other ways I could make a difference in the years ahead,” he wrote in a Substack post on his decision.

The former Biden transportation secretary described America as “less free, less secure, less democratic – and less prosperous” under President Donald Trump’s administration and that he will spend time in the coming months “engaging both legacy and digital media in the service of a politics of everyday life, rooted in the values of freedom, security, and democracy. “

“I will be engaging partners, allies, friends and strangers in the service of a more convincing and widespread account of American prosperity than either side has so far offered,” Buttigieg wrote.

The decision has rattled some Michigan Democrats, who are increasingly anxious about holding onto a Senate seat in a state President Donald Trump won last November.

Senate Democratic leaders and officials involved with their campaign arm, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, have been privately lobbying Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to run for the seat, according to two people with direct knowledge of the conversations.

If Whitmer runs, top Democrats believe, she would be their strongest contender to hold the seat for the party. But Whitmer — who is considering a 2028 run for president — is uninterested, according to one of those people.

Other Michigan Democrats, including former Sen. Debbie Stabenow, are now encouraging freshman Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet to run behind the scenes, according to two people familiar with those discussions. The first-term Democrat won a tough battleground seat Trump also carried. And they believe her mid-Michigan district, which is home to the birthplace of General Motors, represents the kinds of working-class voters that their Senate candidate would need to win in 2026.

She would not be the only House Democrat to consider a run. Behind the scenes, Rep. Haley Stevens is also preparing a possible bid if the party doesn’t rally behind another candidate, according to the two people familiar.

Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, mounted a presidential campaign in 2019 positioning himself as a moderate. He entered race as a relative unknown among nearly two-dozen Democrats running for the chance to take on Trump at the time.

Buttigieg broke barriers as the first openly gay man to launch a competitive campaign for president and raised more than $80 million during his 2020 run.

While he had initial success in Iowa and New Hampshire, his campaign struggled to win over voters of color, a key base of the Democratic Party, which hurt his performance in Nevada and South Carolina, leading him to end his campaign shortly before Super Tuesday.

Following his failed bid, Buttigieg vaulted into Cabinet work as transportation secretary under former President Joe Biden in a move that many Democrats saw as needed experience for another presidential run.

During his tenure as mayor, Buttigieg deployed to Afghanistan in 2014 as an intelligence officer.

This headline and story have been updated with additional developments.

CNN’s Edward-Isaac Dovere and Arlette Saenz contributed to this report.

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