Pete Buttigieg to guest host 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' for reasons we can't possibly discern

Former Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg is going to guest host Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show because... well... because he is?

The former mayor of South Bend, Indiana dropped the details on The Today Show on Monday morning.

"Yeah, on Thursday, I'm going to be guest-hosting Jimmy Kimmel Live," Buttigieg said. "We're really excited for that, lining up a great slate of guests. Sir Patrick Stewart's coming on — we're very excited about that."

Later, when asked if he would be doing a monologue, the former 2020 Democrat admitted he might need a hand.

"Hopefully some funnier minds than mine will be doing some writing for that. But I think it's going to be fun," Buttigieg said. "The thing about coming off a presidential campaign is you have been focused on one thing, and one thing only. It's nice to be able to zoom out and just come back at life."

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Is it clear why Buttigieg is getting the guest gig? No. Is it happening? Yes.

It's an interesting choice to hand the keys of a late-night show over to Buttigieg. The 38-year-old isn't exactly known for his sense of humor — although, what politician is?

Buttigieg, who suspended his campaign on March 1, said he and his husband, Chasten, were planning to take some time off before jumping back into public life.

"Then we'll come back and I'll make myself useful in new ways," he said.

But before all that, he's got to handle the one-off Kimmel gig. It seems like a safe bet he'll grill Stewart about Star Trek. A 2018 profile in Indianapolis Monthly noted that Buttigieg grew up an awkward kid who loved the fictional space exploration franchise.

“Still like Star Trek,” he said at the time.