Gary Peters' exit creates a highly contested U.S. Senate battleground seat expected to be coveted by both major political parties.

Pete Buttigieg, 43, a former presidential candidate who's viewed as a rising star by many in Democratic politics, had been floated as a potential candidate for governor next year.

Mallory McMorrow, a state senator who won national Democratic acclaim in 2022 with a speech defending liberal values while identifying herself as a “straight, white, Christian, married suburban mom,” said she had not ruled out a run for either governor or the Senate.