--- title: Trump Reverses Decision to Pull Support From Republican Congressman description: Trump said Rep. Jeff Hurd's right-wing primary opponent will end her campaign to take a yet-to-be-determined position in his Administration. canonical: https://time.com/article/2026/03/20/trump-midterms-primary-endorsement-jeff-hurd-hope-scheppelman/ author: Chantelle Lee article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2026-03-20T17:14:49.465Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-13T06:52:26.373Z article:section: Politics og:title: Trump Reverses Decision to Pull Support From Republican Congressman og:description: Trump said Rep. Jeff Hurd's right-wing primary opponent will end her campaign to take a yet-to-be-determined position in his Administration. og:url: https://time.com/article/2026/03/20/trump-midterms-primary-endorsement-jeff-hurd-hope-scheppelman/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8e79044a455eb042/69bd7c9d1994b29a597c23bd/Jeff-Hurd-Trump.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: Jeff-Hurd-Trump.jpg og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Trump Reverses Decision to Pull Support From Republican Congressman twitter:description: Trump said Rep. Jeff Hurd's right-wing primary opponent will end her campaign to take a yet-to-be-determined position in his Administration. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8e79044a455eb042/69bd7c9d1994b29a597c23bd/Jeff-Hurd-Trump.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Trump Reverses Decision to Pull Support From Republican Congressman and Offers Challenger Admin Role to Drop Bid > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. by [Chantelle Lee](https://time.com/author/chantelle-lee/) ## Chantelle Lee Reporter Mar 20, 2026 5:14 PM UTC  Rep. Jeff Hurd, R-Colo., speaks during a news conference at the Republican National Committee after a meeting of the House Republican Conference on Jan. 22, 2025. Rep. Jeff Hurd, R-Colo., speaks during a news conference at the Republican National Committee after a meeting of the House Republican Conference on Jan. 22, 2025. Tom Williams—CQ-Roll Call, Inc/Getty Images by [Chantelle Lee](https://time.com/author/chantelle-lee/) ## Chantelle Lee Reporter Mar 20, 2026 5:14 PM UTC President Donald Trump said on Friday that the right-wing candidate challenging Colorado Rep. [Jeff Hurd](https://time.com/7377952/republicans-break-with-trump-to-overturn-canada-tariffs/) in the Republican primary race for his Congressional seat will be ending her campaign in order to take on a yet-to-be-determined role in the Trump Administration. “I met with Hope Scheppelman and her husband Steven, of the Radical Left State of Colorado, to discuss various opportunities to serve our Country in a different capacity than her current run for the United States Congress,” Trump said in a [Truth Social post](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116261847910261480). “I am proud to announce that they will be leaving the Campaign trail in order to join my Administration, in a capacity to be determined.” “Together with them, we decided that Congressman Jeff Hurd, of Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District, should in no way, shape, or form, be impeded from winning the District in that the Democrat alternative is a DISASTER for our Country,” he continued. “Therefore, I will be fully supporting Jeff’s Re-Election to the House of Representatives, giving him my Complete and Total Endorsement!” The news is a major reversal on the part of the President, who, just a month ago, withdrew his [previous endorsement](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115434869707731740) of Hurd, after the Congressman [joined five other Republicans](https://time.com/7377952/republicans-break-with-trump-to-overturn-canada-tariffs/) in breaking from their party and voting with Democrats to pass a resolution to block Trump’s tariffs on Canada. At the time, Trump accused Hurd of being a “RINO,” which stands for “Republican in name only.” He said in a [Truth Social post](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116110654345152184) that “taking back an Endorsement is a difficult decision,” but that “these are the decisions that must be made … to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” “Congressman Hurd is one of a small number of Legislators who have let me and our Country down,” Trump said at the time. “He is more interested in protecting Foreign Countries that have been ripping us off for decades than he is the United States of America.” He went on to endorse Hurd’s primary opponent, Scheppelman, a former nurse practitioner and a U.S. Navy veteran. At the time, Scheppelman thanked Trump for his endorsement, [saying on X](https://x.com/HopeSchepp/status/2025320240910078119) that she was “honored” to have his “trust and support.” In the lead-up to the midterm elections, Trump has [publicly lambasted](https://time.com/7358546/trump-midterms-republicans-primaries/) several Republican lawmakers who are up for re-election after they broke with him and the party when voting on certain pieces of legislation. Among the subjects of his ire have been Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, and Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana. Hurd [said](https://x.com/RepJeffHurd/status/2021734812210352522) in February that his opposition to Trump’s tariffs on Canada was “not a partisan calculation” but “an economic and institutional one.” He said that although “Congress has delegated limited authority to the Executive Branch, particularly in matters involving national emergencies … those delegations were never intended to serve as a permanent vehicle for sweeping, long-term trade policy.” After Trump announced that he was re-endorsing Hurd on Friday, the Congressman thanked the President in a social media post. “I’m grateful for President Trump’s support and appreciate his efforts to unify Republicans in Colorado’s Third District,” Hurd [said on X](https://x.com/jeff4colorado/status/2034996460798824878?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet). “The President and I share the same goals: securing the border, American energy dominance, and helping working families.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/03/20/trump-midterms-primary-endorsement-jeff-hurd-hope-scheppelman/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/03/20/trump-midterms-primary-endorsement-jeff-hurd-hope-scheppelman/"},"headline":"Trump Reverses Decision to Pull Support From Republican Congressman and Offers Challenger Admin Role to Drop Bid","datePublished":"2026-03-20T17:14:49.465Z","dateModified":"2026-05-13T06:52:26.373Z","description":"Trump said Rep. 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