Buttigieg cancels Florida events due to cold: campaign

Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg has canceled events in Florida after falling ill with a cold, his campaign said Wednesday.

The Associated Press reported that the Buttigieg campaign said the former South Bend, Ind., mayor would meet in Charleston, S.C., with the Rev. Al Sharpton as planned while canceling four events in Florida, three of which were fundraisers.

Buttigieg will also travel to Washington, D.C., and attend scheduled meetings with supporters, according to the AP.

The developments come just ahead of the South Carolina primary on Saturday and follow Buttigieg’s performance at the Democratic primary debate Tuesday in Charleston. The state is a crucial test for his campaign, which is seeking to prove that he can attract support from African American voters after strong showings in Iowa and New Hampshire, which have largely white electorates.

Buttigieg trailed Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and former Vice President Joe Biden (D) in the Nevada caucuses over the weekend, the first contest of the 2020 primary season with a sizable Latino voting population.