Story highlights The South Bend native is vying in a field of eight contenders

"Pete is the best person to unite us," New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu said

Washington (CNN) Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, has picked up the endorsements of nine of his counterparts around the nation, including the chief executives of New Orleans, Austin, Texas and Santa Fe, New Mexico, in his bid to chair the Democratic National Committee.

The 35-year-old is vying in a field of eight contenders, led by Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison and former Labor Secretary Tom Perez, for the leadership spot.

Monday's endorsements come before the candidates participate in a debate hosted by CNN on Wednesday night and the 447 members of the DNC vote Saturday in Atlanta.

Buttigieg has made the case that, unlike Bernie Sanders-backed Ellison and Hillary Clinton ally Perez, he would represent a break from the party's 2016 primary divides -- and give the party a major voice from outside Washington.

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, the brother of former Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu, hit both of those themes in a statement first obtained by CNN, calling Buttigieg part of "a new generation of leadership."

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