South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D), who Wednesday announced an exploratory committee for a presidential run, disputed speculation that he is not seasoned enough to be elected in 2020, noting his experience level compared to President Trump Donald John TrumpObama calls on Senate not to fill Ginsburg's vacancy until after election Planned Parenthood: 'The fate of our rights' depends on Ginsburg replacement Progressive group to spend M in ad campaign on Supreme Court vacancy MORE's.

“I have more years of experience in government than the president of the United States does, I have more years of executive experience than the vice president of the United States has, and I have more military experience than the two of them put together," Buttigieg, a 37-year-old Navy Reserve veteran, said on KCBS radio.

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“I get that I’m the youngest person in this conversation, but I also believe that experience is one of the reasons I should be in the mix. The experience of guiding the comeback of a city that was written off in national media as dying at the beginning of this decade and is now growing again in the industrial Midwest not through nostalgia, not through resentment, but through real problem solving, getting things done in accordance with our values. I think that’s what we need to bring to the table in Washington.”

Buttigieg entered what is expected to be a crowded primary field that could see as many as 30 candidates fighting for the Democratic Party’s nomination.

The Indiana Democrat is likely to face other candidates such as former Vice President Joe Biden Joe BidenSenate Republicans face tough decision on replacing Ginsburg What Senate Republicans have said about election-year Supreme Court vacancies Biden says Ginsburg successor should be picked by candidate who wins on Nov. 3 MORE, Sen. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersKenosha will be a good bellwether in 2020 Biden's fiscal program: What is the likely market impact? McConnell accuses Democrats of sowing division by 'downplaying progress' on election security MORE (I-Vt.), Sen. Kamala Harris Kamala HarrisThe Hill's Campaign Report: Trump and Biden vie for Minnesota | Early voting begins in four states | Blue state GOP governors back Susan Collins Kamala Harris: Black Americans have been 'disproportionately harmed' by Trump Biden town hall draws 3.3 million viewers for CNN MORE (D-Calif.), Sen. Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth WarrenBiden's fiscal program: What is the likely market impact? Warren, Schumer introduce plan for next president to cancel ,000 in student debt The Hill's 12:30 Report - Presented by Facebook - Don't expect a government check anytime soon MORE (D-Mass.) and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand Kirsten GillibrandSuburban moms are going to decide the 2020 election Jon Stewart urges Congress to help veterans exposed to burn pits The Hill's Campaign Report: 19 years since 9/11 | Dem rival to Marjorie Taylor Greene drops out | Collin Peterson faces fight of his career | Court delivers blow to ex-felon voting rights in Florida MORE (D-N.Y.) with larger name recognition, deeper pockets and campaigns staffed by top party talent.

“With all due respect to some of the other federal offices that people hold and the good people who hold them, I’m not sure that what we want is more of what we’ve been seeing in the United States Congress compared to what we’ve been seeing in our best-run American cities,” he said.

“At least of the people who have jumped in, I’m the only one who is living a middle-class lifestyle in a middle-class neighborhood in middle America,” he added in comments to reporters in Washington Wednesday.

Buttigieg could benefit from a crowded primary field in which several of the perceived front-runners divide the vote amongst themselves and carve a path for a candidate who could cast themselves as a Washington outsider with political experience.

The South Bend mayor was first elected in 2011 at age 29. He became the youngest person to serve as the mayor of a city with a population of more than 100,000 when he took office in 2012, and he won a second term in 2015.

An unsuccessful bid for Democratic National Committee chairmanship in 2017 helped raise Buttigieg’s national profile.