Two years later his military and political career started in earnest with the Colombian Liberal Party in the fight against the dictator Jose Maria Melo.

In 1878 President Julian Trujillo Largacha appointed him Minister of War and Navy, and a year later he was elected Governor of the Sovereign State of Cauca (1879–1883).

Hurtado's elevation was due to the "April Revolution" (1879), led by Generals Eliseo Payan and Juan de Dios Ulloa, who represented a coalition of independents and "mosqueristas" who opposed the abuses committed by radicals.

When he left the Presidency he campaigned against the Nuñez's Regeneration project of, and in the war of 1885 he was taken prisoner and suffered harsh treatment.

He was subsequently exiled to Costa Rica (Central America), but in 1889, shortly before his death, was allowed to return to Colombia.