Trump Critic Will Hurd Drops Out Of Republican Presidential Race, Endorses Nikki Haley

Topline

Will Hurd, a longshot candidate for president in the 2024 Republican primary race, announced Monday that he was ending his bid for the Republican nomination for president—the latest struggling candidate to call it quits ahead of the Iowa caucuses.

Key Facts

Hurd, a former congressman from Texas, wrote, “it has become clear to me and my team that the time has come to suspend our campaign,” on X, formerly known as Twitter.

He acknowledged that he was a “dark horse candidate” and was competing with candidates that have better name recognition and more money.

He endorsed Nikki Haley, former governor of South Carolina and UN ambassador, whom he said “has shown a willingness to articulate a different vision for the country than Donald Trump and has an unmatched grasp on the complexities of our foreign policy.”

Hurd becomes the third candidate to drop out of the Republican primary following Miami Mayor Francis Suarez and former Cranston, Rhode Island, Mayor Steve Laffey, both of whom were also longshots.

Crucial Quote

“Americans deserve better than the rematch from hell between Donald Trump and Joe Biden,” Hurd said, calling on Republicans “to consolidate our party around one person to defeat both Donald Trump and President Biden.”

Key Background

Hurd, 45 frequently attacked Trump. He struggled to gain name recognition and amass the campaign funds that many of his opponents had, failing to meet the requirements to qualify for either of the two Republican debates so far. Hurd, who also worked in the CIA for a decade and was called the “future of the GOP” by Politico when he was still a House member, tried to cast himself as a traditional candidate. He told NPR in July that American politics have elevated the “lunatic fringes,” adding that “we’re coming up on 20 years that a Republican has not won a popular vote at the national level.” Hurd represented Texas’ 23rd congressional district from 2015 to 2021.

News Peg

Trump holds around 57% support among Republican primary voters, according to the latest RealClearPolitics polling average. Haley, whom Hurd has now pledged to support, is polling around 7%, putting her in third place behind Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is polling around 13%. Vivek Ramaswamy, a businessman from Ohio, and Mike Pence, former vice president, represent the next largest challengers with around 6% and 4% support, respectively.

Further Reading

Miami Mayor Suarez Ends Longshot GOP Presidential Campaign (Forbes)

RFK Jr. Launches Independent Presidential Bid—Challenging Biden And Trump (Forbes)

Trump Faces Second Lawsuit In A Week Challenging His Candidacy Under 14th Amendment (Forbes)