Rep. Jeff Hurd, a Republican running for reelection in a closely contested race, has been working to distance himself from President Donald Trump — but many voters in Colorado's 3rd Congressional District are refusing to let him do so.

The stakes of that effort are concrete: in a closely contested district, Hurd's reelection prospects may rest less on his breaks with the president — on tariffs and public lands — than on the Trump-backed votes, like the Big Beautiful Bill and its Medicaid cuts, that hit closest to home for the constituents who pressed him directly.

In a report on the district from NPR, journalist Bente Birkeland interviewed constituents about their incumbent Republican lawmaker. Hurd has tried to cast himself as something other than a diehard MAGA supporter, pointing to his opposition to Trump's tariffs and to the sale of public lands. Yet the Coloradans who spoke with Birkeland continued to tie him to the unpopular Trump policies he did support.

Among them was Renee McCullough, a retired teacher who serves as a full-time caregiver to her significantly disabled adult son, Chris. She told Hurd she opposed his vote for the so-called Big Beautiful Bill, which cut programs such as Medicaid while returning money to wealthy Americans through tax reductions.

"Why would you have voted for that if you know that it's gonna take money and services and everything away from your constituents?" McCullough asked the congressman.

Sandra Hernandez, an unaffiliated voter, was blunt in her criticism of Hurd. "Congress is, is failing. They have just turned. They're kind of like my pup, rolled over on their back to rub your belly to the executive branch, do what you want," she said.

Voter Julie Seidel offered an equally scathing assessment. "I've been working hard," Seidel told Birkeland. "I believe you're competent. I believe you're a standup guy. But I also think that, to use an old metaphor, you are doing a good job of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic."

Hurd, responding to criticism of this kind, acknowledged his shortcomings. "And I will tell you, I'm not perfect and I'm gonna make mistakes, and there's probably better ways that I could be doing it and I will strive to be better," he said.

Birkeland closed her report by observing, "He says he knows a lot of his constituents disagree with him and that's okay. Hurd hopes he can still convince enough voters that he's ultimately on their side."

Trump's stance toward Hurd has shifted dramatically. Last year, the president voiced unequivocal support for the congressman in a post on his Truth Social platform, describing Hurd as an "'incredible' lawmaker with 'a strong Record of SUCCESS,'" and adding, "Jeff Hurd has my Complete and Total Endorsement for Re-Election — HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN!"

In February, however, Trump turned on Hurd over the congressman's opposition to his tariffs. "Based on a lack of support … for the unbelievably successful TARIFFS imposed on Foreign Countries and Companies which has made America Richer, Stronger, Bigger, and Better than ever before, I am hereby WITHDRAWING my Endorsement of RINO (Republican In Name Only) Congressman Jeff Hurd, of Colorado's 3rd District," Trump wrote on Truth Social, concluding that Hurd "let me and our Country down. He is more interested in protecting Foreign Countries that have been ripping us off for decades than he is the United States of America."

The withdrawal means Hurd will make his case to voters without the president's endorsement — while still answering for the Trump-backed votes, most prominently the Big Beautiful Bill, that constituents continue to raise with him directly.