WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Former U.S. Representative Will Hurd, once the sole Black Republican in Congress, on Thursday joined the crowded race to beat Donald Trump for the party’s 2024 presidential nomination.
Hurd, 45, announced his candidacy in a video and a Twitter post, stressing unity, the economy and equal opportunity for all Americans. He said his vision of America would acknowledge science, address mental health, and be inclusive and understanding.
“It’s not a given that this vision for America will happen, but it can if we focus on our timeless principles and limitless potential, not self interest in politics,” Hurd said.
A former undercover CIA officer in the Middle East and South Asia, Hurd served on the House Intelligence Committee. He was first elected to Congress in 2014.
Hurd did not run for re-election in his southern Texas border district in 2020, saying he wanted to pursue opportunities outside Congress.
In 2019, he strongly criticized tweets by then-President Trump saying four progressive Democratic minority congresswomen, including one born in Somalia, should “go back” to where they came from. “Those tweets are racist and xenophobic,” Hurd said at the time.
Trump remains the front-runner in the crowded field of Republicans aiming to unseat President Joe Biden, the likely Democratic candidate in 2024.
Hurd is the second Black candidate in the Republican race, joining U.S. Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina.
(Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Nick Zieminski)
