Former Texas Rep. Will Hurd suspends long-shot GOP 2024 presidential bid, endorses Nikki Haley
Former Texas congressman Will Hurd has suspended his Republican presidential bid, abandoning a brief campaign built on criticizing Donald Trump at a time when his party seems even more determined to embrace the former president.
As his district gets redder, Uvaldeโs Republican congressman faces heat for votes on guns and gay marriage
Gonzales broke with his party to support sweeping gun safety legislation that passed after the cityโs tragedy. He drew backlash from GOP activists again after he voted to protect same-sex marriage.
Former Rep. Will Hurd writing book, expected in 2022
FILE - Rep. Will Hurd, R-Texas, a member of the House Intelligence Committee, speaks during a public impeachment hearing of President Donald Trump on Capitol Hill in Washington. Hurd, the Texas Republican who at times openly criticized Trump, has a book deal. Simon & Schuster announced Wednesday that his book, currently untitled, was expected to come out in 2022. (Andrew Harrer/Pool Photo via AP, File)NEW YORK โ Former Rep. Will Hurd, the Texas Republican who at times openly criticized President Donald Trump, has a book deal. Simon & Schuster announced Wednesday that his book, currently untitled, was expected to come out in 2022.
Romney: Trumpโs election fraud claim wrong, โrecklessโ
(AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)WASHINGTON โ Key Republican lawmakers, including 2012 presidential nominee Mitt Romney, on Friday slammed President Donald Trumpโs unsubstantiated claim that Democrats are trying to โstealโ the election. But some GOP leaders struck a more neutral tone โ and others urged the White House to fight. But Trump โis wrong to say the election was rigged, corrupt and stolen,โณ Romney said on Twitter. Before Trump's speech in the White House briefing room, several Republicans challenged his attempts to halt vote-counting in Pennsylvania and other battleground states. "It is critical that we give election officials time to complete their jobs, and that we ensure all lawfully cast ballots are allowed and counted,'' she said in a statement.
In blue and red states, milestone wins for LGBTQ candidates
According to the LGBTQ Victory Fund, which recruits and supports LGBTQ candidates, that leaves only Alaska, Louisiana and Mississippi as states that have never elected an LGBTQ legislator. With the addition of Jones and Torres, there will be nine openly LGBTQ members of the House as of January. Two other Democrats became the first openly transgender people to win seats in their statesโ Houses: Taylor Small in Vermont and Stephanie Byers in Kansas. And in New York, Jabari Brisport, a gay math teacher, became the first openly LGBTQ person of color elected to the legislature. And in southwestern Michiganโs 6th District, Jon Hoadley, seeking to become the stateโs first openly gay congressman, lost to 17-term GOP Rep. Fred Upton.
Analysis: In close elections, two opponents can be better than one
The all-Republican court rejected a Republican effort to erase 44 Libertarian candidates from the ballot. The theory operating here is that Libertarian candidates siphon more votes from Republicans than from Democrats. A related bit of political folklore is that Green Party candidates take votes that would otherwise go to Democrats. State Rep. Gina Calanni, a Democrat, beat a Republican incumbent by 113 votes in a 2018 race in which a Libertarian got 1,106 votes. For instance, state Rep. Jonathan Stickland, R-Bedford, won reelection by 1,428 votes; the Libertarian in his race got 1,644 votes.
Raul Reyes seeking recount in Republican runoff against Tony Gonzales for U.S. Rep. Will Hurds seat
Raul Reyes, left, and Tony Gonzales are running for the Texas Congressional District 23 seat being vacated by Republican U.S. Rep. Will Hurd. Raul Reyes announced Friday night that he will seek a recount in the razor-thin Republican primary runoff to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, R-Helotes, in his national battleground district. Reyes' announcement came after the Texas GOP certified the results of his July 14 runoff against Tony Gonzales. The campaigns said the final margin was Gonzales by 45 votes, though the party had not confirmed that as of late Friday night. But Reyes held firm against conceding and began fundraising for a potential recount while waiting for the state party canvass.
Record number of LGBTQ candidates running for office in US
The LGBTQ Victory Institutes Out For America report, released Thursday, tallies 843 openly LGBTQ elected officials across all levels of government at present, up from 417 in June 2016. The institute says a record 850 LGBTQ people are running for office this year, including several candidates with strong chances of entering Congress. As of 2018, it counted 438 LGBTQ elected officials affiliated with the Democratic Party and only 16 Republicans. During that same time period, the number of transgender elected officials rose from six to 26. When LGBTQ elected officials are in the halls of power, they change the hearts and minds of their lawmaker colleagues, defeat anti-LGBTQ bills and inspire more inclusive legislation, she said.
Texas congressional candidate backed by Donald Trump remains in too-close-to-call runoff with Ted Cruz's pick
From left, Tony Gonzales and Raul Reyes are running for the Texas Congressional District 23 seat that is being vacated by U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, R-Texas. Texas TribunePresident Donald Trump's choice to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, R-Helotes, was in a too-close-to-call runoff Tuesday night against a candidate endorsed by U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz. The Trump-backed Tony Gonzales was trailing Cruz's pick, Raul Reyes, by just 11 votes out of 24,533 with all polling locations reporting, according to unofficial results. Gonzales, a former Navy cryptologist backed by Hurd and House leaders, nabbed Trump's endorsement earlier this month, just three days after Cruz endorsed Reyes. Trump had endorsed another candidate in the Texas runoffs, Ronny Jackson, the former White House doctor running to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Clarendon.
Donald Trump, Ted Cruz back opposing candidates in competitive GOP runoff to replace U.S. Rep. Will Hurd
But in an interview after Trump's endorsement, Gonzales maintained he is still the strongest candidate to do that, and the president's backing only reinforces it. A day later, Cruz made the Reyes endorsement official, saying the district "deserves strong conservative representation." Cruz's Reyes endorsement was not entirely a mystery, though. An already nasty runoffThings were already bitter and personal between the runoff candidates before Cruz and Trump got involved. "I'll face off against a Trump puppet who will support the Trump administration's extreme agenda regardless of how much it harms Texas families."
Donald Trump endorses Tony Gonzales to replace U.S. Rep. Will Hurd
Tony Gonzales announces in San Antonio that he is running for the Texas Congressional District 23 seat being vacated by Will Hurd. Robin Jerstad for The Texas TribunePresident Donald Trump on Friday endorsed Tony Gonzales in the Republican primary runoff to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, R-Helotes, three days after U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz shook up the race by backing Gonzales' opponent, Raul Reyes. Cruz endorsed Reyes on Tuesday and launched a TV ad buy for him through his leadership PAC. While the Trump endorsement gives Gonzales a big boost in the primary runoff, it is likely less helpful for the general election. Trump lost the perennial battleground district by 4 percentage points in 2016, while Hurd carried it by 1.