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Pete Buttigieg, mayor of South Bend, Indiana, is not your typical candidate for president. Here are a few facts about 'Mayor Pete.' USA TODAY

WASHINGTON Pete Buttigieg got a heros welcome as he took the stage Sunday at a fundraising brunch for a group that supports LGBTQ candidates.

The improbable presidential campaign of the previously little-known, openly-gay mayor of South Bend, Indiana, has been generating significant buzz, positive headlines, and large crowds in important primary states like New Hampshire.

He arrived at the LGBTQ Victory Fund event fresh off an interview with NBCs "Meet the Press."

He was on the front page of that mornings Washington Post.

In Buttigieg, gay Americans see a symbol of acceptance, the headline read.

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But as he spoke to a packed hotel ballroom illuminated with lavender lights, Buttigieg shared something that hes still uncomfortable admitting.

"If you had offered me a pill to make me straight, I wouldve swallowed it before you had time to give me a sip of water," he said. "Its hard to face the truth that there were times in my life when, if you had shown me exactly what it was inside me that made me gay, I would have cut it out with a knife."

Opinion: Mayor Pete Buttigieg's countercultural approach to Christianity is what America needs now

Fortunately, there was no knife and no pill, Buttigieg said. Because then he would not have met his husband, Chasten, who has made him a better person, hesaid and their marriage hasmoved him closer to God. The message many gay people get that theres something wrong with them, he continued, is a message that puts you at war not only with yourself, but with your maker.

Thats the thing that I wish the Mike Pences of the worldwould understand, Buttigieg said of the vice president, who has opposed same-sex marriage. That if you have a problem with who I am, your problem is not with me. Your quarrel, sir, is with my creator.

Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg speaks at the LGBTQ Victory Fund National Champagne Brunch on April 7, 2019 in Washington.(Photo: Keren Carrion, USA TODAY)

Its unusual for Democratic presidential candidates to talk about faith as often as Buttigieg does. Its groundbreaking that he uses his marriage to another man to illustrate his personal relationship with God.

Buttigieg gets easy applause lines at Democratic-friendly audiences, as he did Sunday, for criticizing Pence when he talks about being gay. (His first mention of Pence on Sunday, when Buttigieg described coming out while Pence was serving as Indianas governor, generated boos and hisses.)

Buttigieg has also drawn headlines by questioning how President Donald Trumps professed belief in God squares with his behavior and by challenging the support Trump receives from many evangelicalChristians.

I cant believe that somebody that was caught writing hush money checks to adult film actresses is somebody they should be lifting up as the kind of person they want to be leading this nation, he said on "Meet the Press" Sunday.

Jack Jacobson, an openly-gay member of the D.C. State Board of Education who attended the Victory Fund brunch, said Buttigiegs openness about his faith is part of what makes him an authentic candidate.

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He talked about God in a room thats probably full of atheists. Thats what I am, Jacobson said. He does it unabashedly and in a way that doesnt come across as threatening, dismissive or negative.

Heather Trout, 43, who lives with her wife in a rural county in Virginia, said Buttigiegs faith is one reason shes contributed to his campaign.

Im really very excited about hearing a voice from the Christian left, she said before Buttigieg spoke. I think thats a voice not used in the Democratic Party for too long.

Likewise, Brian Tyler, said he knew he had to come to the brunch when he found out Buttigieg was coming.

Im a big fan, said Tyler, 24, a logistics coordinator. Republicans dont have a monopolyon faith.

Excitement in his official candidacy an announcement Buttigieg is expected to make this month in South Bend after spending weeks in an exploratory mode made it easy for the Victory Fund to fill the hotel ballroom with more than 800 people, according to organizers.

But as proud as attendees said they would be to see one of their own as a presidential nominee, many said they are excited about other candidates as well.

I would really like to vote for a woman, said Elizabeth Carswell, a retired federal government worker who appreciates Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warrens work for economic justice. But he brings a lot that is making me look at him.

The Human Rights Campaign, the largest gay rights advocacy group, has said Buttigieg is one of many pro-equality candidates in the race.

California Sen. Kamala Harris and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker recently spoke at a major HRC dinner in Los Angeles.

Buttigiegs husband, Chasten who has been getting a lot of media attention of his own lately addressed an HRC gathering in Houston on Saturday.

Never underestimate what can happen when you agree to go on a date with a cute guy from South Bend, Indiana, he said, calling his marriage to Pete the adventure of a lifetime.

I now live in a world where people take photos of me in the deodorant aisle in the grocery story, he said. I could be the first man in history to pick out the White House china.

Chasten Buttigieg, right, listens as his husband, Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg, speaks at the LGBTQ Victory Fund National Champagne Brunch on April 7, 2019 in Washington.(Photo: Keren Carrion, USAT)

The Victory Fund had planned to stay focused on candidates for 2019 races before wading into the presidential contest. (The group is on track to help triple from two to six the number of openly-lesbianmayors leading major cities.) But Victory Fund President Annise Parker hinted Sunday that the group will make an exception and endorse Buttigieg after heofficially becomes a candidate.

We are not going to look over 2019 and jump to 2020 except in maybe one instance, Parker told the crowd. We knew he was something special. Now the rest of the world is catching up.

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Pete Buttigieg on God, being gay and Mike Pence