Former Mayor Pete Buttigieg said Monday he preferred Popeyes fried chicken over Chick-fil-A during a forum for black voters in Des Moines, Iowa.
During a lightning round of short questions at the Black and Brown Presidential Forum hosted by Vice, Buttigieg paused and replied, “Popeyes,” when asked to choose between Popeyes and Chick-fil-A.
Buttigieg was criticized last year for defending Chick-fil-A’s chicken.
“I do not approve of their politics, but I kind of approve of their chicken,” Buttigieg said when asked about Chick-fil-A during an interview with The Breakfast Club radio show in March 2019.
The openly gay mayor suggested at the time he could broker a “peace deal” between the gay community and the fast food company, which donated money to Christian organizations.
“Maybe if nothing else, I can build that bridge,” he joked. “Maybe I’ll be in a position to broker that peace deal.”
In a second interview in September, Buttigieg admitted he was ignorant of Popeyes introducing their own chicken sandwich, which some gay activists declared as the “gay-friendly” chicken sandwich.
“Did you have the Popeyes chicken sandwich?” the interviewer, Charlamagne Tha God, asked.
“No, what is it?” Buttigieg replied.
“You haven’t seen it?” a surprised Charlamagne replied. “I’m sure your team has seen the Popeyes chicken sandwich!”
“Why wasn’t I briefed on this?” Buttigieg replied, looking at his staff.
Buttigieg was also ridiculed for asking Al Sharpton in April if it was okay to eat fried chicken with his hands.