WASHINGTON (AP) – President-elect Joe Biden has formally announced former rival Pete Buttigieg as his pick to be secretary of transportation. Buttigieg would be the first openly gay person confirmed by the Senate to a Cabinet post. The 38-year-old former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, was virtually unknown nationally when he launched a longshot bid for president, but became a formidable political force in the early primary states, finishing well ahead of Biden in Iowa and New Hampshire. Buttigieg eventually endorsed Biden, who later suggested the ex-mayor could be a bridge to a new generation of Democratic leadership. Biden plans to formally introduce Buttigieg during a Delaware event Wednesday with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.