Will Hurd

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Will Hurd
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Texas's 23rd district
In office
January 3, 2015 – January 3, 2021
Preceded byPete Gallego
Succeeded byTony Gonzales
Personal details
Born
William Ballard Hurd

(1977-08-19) August 19, 1977 (age 46)
San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
Lynlie Wallace (m. 2022)
EducationTexas A&M University (BS)

William Ballard Hurd (born August 19, 1977) is an American politician. He was the U.S. representative for Texas's 23rd congressional district from 2015 to 2021.[1][2] Before becoming a congressman, Hurd was a CIA agent. During his congressional career, he was known for his cybersecurity knowledge and from 2019 until 2021, he was the only African-American Republican in the House of Representatives.[1][3]

In June 2023, Hurd announced his candidacy for President of the United States in the 2024 election.[4] Four months later, he dropped out of the race on October 9, 2023.[5]

Early life[change | change source]

Hurd was born in San Antonio, Texas. He is the son of Mary Alice Hurd and Robert Hurd. His father is black and his mother is white.[6] Hurd studied at Texas A&M University, where he was elected student body president. He majored in computer science and minored in international relations.[7]

Intelligence career[change | change source]

Hurd worked for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) for nine years, from 2000 to 2009. He worked in Washington, D.C., but he was also an operations officer in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. One of his roles at the CIA was briefing members of Congress, which is why Hurd ran for Congress.[8]

Political career[change | change source]

Hurd ran for the United States House of Representatives in 2010, but he lost the election. He ran again in 2014, this time winning the election. Even though Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney had won the district two years earlier, Hurd winning was seen as an upset.[9] Hurd conducted a post-election swing through some parts of his district that had heavily supported Gallego.[10]

Hurd was the vice-chair of the Border and Maritime Subcommittee of the Homeland Security Committee.[11] He was seen as a top expert on technological and cybersecurity-related issues while serving in Congress.[6]

In 2016, while running for re-election, Hurd became a strong-critic of then-Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.[12] He was re-elected by a little over 1% of the vote.[13][14]

In July 2018, his re-election campaign was seen as "the most expensive congressional race in the Texas's history".[15] The race was the closest House race in Texas and one of the closest in the country. Hurd was declared the official winner on November 19 by a margin of 926 votes.[16]

Hurd decided not to run again in 2020. During his time in congress, Hurd was seen as a moderate and voted with Democrats on some issues.[17]

2024 presidential campaign[change | change source]

On June 22, 2023, Hurd announced that he would be a candidate in the 2024 presidential election.[18] He dropped out of the race on October 9, 2023, and endorsed Nikki Haley.[5]

Personal life[change | change source]

After leaving Congress, Hurd became a Winter 2021 Resident Fellow at the Institute of Politics of the University of Chicago.[19] In May 2021, Hurd was appointed to the board of directors for OpenAI.[20]

Hurd married Lynlie Wallace, a former congressional chief of staff to another Texas congressman, on December 31, 2022.[21]

References[change | change source]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Recio, Maria (November 6, 2014). "Texas Sending First Black Republican to Congress". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Retrieved January 8, 2015.
  2. ↑ Hansi Lo Wang (November 8, 2014). "As GOP Swept Congress, Black Republicans Took Home Historic Wins". NPR. Retrieved November 17, 2014.
  3. ↑ Hansi Lo Wang (November 8, 2014). "As GOP Swept Congress, Black Republicans Took Home Historic Wins". NPR. Retrieved November 17, 2014.
  4. ↑ Will Weisser (June 22, 2023). "Former Texas congressman Will Hurd, a Trump critic, announces 2024 Republican presidential campaign". Associated Press.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Vakil, Caroline (October 9, 2023). "Hurd drops out of 2024 GOP race, endorses Haley". The Hill. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Alberta, Tim (May 15, 2017). "Will Hurd Is the Future of the GOP". Politico.
  7. ↑ "Texas-23: Will Hurd (R)". National Journal. November 5, 2014. Archived from the original on November 18, 2014.
  8. ↑ Kane, Paul (March 5, 2015). "Texan Will Hurd defies the odds for House Republicans. Can he last?". The Washington Post. Retrieved March 8, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Cybersecurity specialist wins House seat -". FCW. Archived from the original on 2021-09-19. Retrieved 2023-06-22.
  10. ↑ "U.S. rep-elect comes through town". The Fort Stockton Pioneer. December 11, 2015. Archived from the original on August 17, 2016. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  11. ↑ King, Tura (February 24, 2015). "Cong. Will Hurd to Speak at Campus Muster". Texas A&M Today. College Station, Texas. Retrieved March 8, 2015.
  12. ↑ Lambrecht, Bill (March 19, 2016). "A Trump nomination could have congressional impact locally: Congressman distances self from potential GOP nominee". San Antonio Express-News.
  13. ↑ "Nov. 8 general election results". The Texas Tribune. November 8, 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  14. ↑ "Election Results". Texas Secretary of State. November 8, 2016. Retrieved December 17, 2016.
  15. ↑ Connolly, Griffin (July 9, 2018). "Hurd, Democratic Challenger on Pace to Shatter Fundraising Record". Roll Call. Archived from the original on September 26, 2019. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  16. ↑ "Gina Ortiz Jones concedes to Will Hurd in race for Texas' most competitive congressional district". The Dallas Morning News. 2018-11-19. Retrieved 2018-11-26.
  17. ↑ Lambrecht, Bill (29 November 2018). "Will Hurd, a rare moderate in Congress, scores a lawmaking victory as Democrats move in". Houston Chronicle.
  18. ↑ Korte, Cara (June 22, 2023). "Republican Will Hurd announces he's running for president". CBS News.
  19. ↑ Svitek, Patrick (November 13, 2019). "Retiring U.S. Rep. Will Hurd endorses candidate to succeed him". The Texas Tribune.
  20. ↑ Mucha, Sarah (May 3, 2021). "Exclusive: Will Hurd joins OpenAI's board of directors". Axios.
  21. ↑ "Will Hurt on twitter "2023 is already off to an amazing start"". 1 January 2023.
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