White House hopeful Pete Buttigieg Pete ButtigiegThe Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - GOP closes ranks to fill SCOTUS vacancy by November Buttigieg stands in as Pence for Harris's debate practice Hillicon Valley: FBI, DHS warn that foreign hackers will likely spread disinformation around election results | Social media platforms put muscle into National Voter Registration Day | Trump to meet with Republican state officials on tech liability shield MORE (D) got emotional on Saturday when answering a question from a second grader about how to keep schools safe.

"It's not normal, is it? It's not OK. And we owe it to you, we owe it to anybody who's in school, and for that matter their teachers ... to make sure that that safety is there," the South Bend, Ind., mayor said at a campaign stop in California.

"One of the voices that is in my head when someone like you asks a question like that is we cannot let you down," he continued, seemingly choking up. "Those of us in elected office owe it to you to do whatever it takes, even if it means losing an election every now and then."

@PeteButtigieg tears and chokes up with emotion when 2nd grader asks how to keep schools safe from mass shootings. #2020 pic.twitter.com/1U9VQ4YZZg — Brendan Mullen (@BrendanMullen_1) June 2, 2019

There have been 13 school shootings so far in 2019, according to Education Week.

ADVERTISEMENT

Buttigieg's campaign platform calls for universal background checks for gun purchases, a ban on military-style assault weapons and programs to address gun violence.