Shortly after word got out that former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg was ending his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination, the hashtag #thankyoupete began trending nationally on Twitter. Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, rose from political obscurity to make history as the first openly gay man to win delegates in the race for the nomination of a major political party. His exit from the race comes a day after his disappointing fourth-place finish in South Carolina and two days before Super Tuesday, when he was expected to continue to struggle amid the dominance of Sen. Bernie Sanders and resurgence of former Vice President Joe Biden. Buttigieg is heading back to South Bend, Indiana, where he plans to deliver a speech around 8:30 p.m. this evening, his campaign told IndyStar.