Santorum endorses Ted Cruz in Texas Senate race
— -- Texas Senate candidate Ted Cruz on Thursday gained yet another high-profile endorsement, this time from Rick Santorum.
"Ted Cruz is spellbinding, a tremendous orator and principled," Santorum said on Glenn Beck's radio show Thursday morning, according to Santorum's staff. "We need people who can motivate and lead … Ted has that capability."
Santorum reportedly said Cruz, a former state solicitor general, is a "good, conservative vote" and can "engage" beyond taxes and spending.
Santorum repeated much of the same praise during an appearance on Dallas radio station WBAP, telling host Ben Ferguson that he's known Cruz for 5 or 6 years and regards him as a "dynamic individual" who can act as a strong advocate in the Senate.
The former presidential candidate encouraged Texas voters to head to the polls next Tuesday for Cruz. "Let's deliver Ted a big victory here," Santorum said, noting that ideally the campaign would like a win over 50 percent to avoid a runoff.
Cruz, a tea party star, received an endorsement from Sarah Palin earlier this month, which according to his staff resulted in a rush of donations. Cruz has also been endorsed by Ron Paul, the Tea Party Express, the Club for Growth, and FreedomWorks in his bid to win the GOP nomination in the open seat race to succeed retiring Republican Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison. The primary is May 29.
Cruz faces strong competition from Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, whom Cruz and his supporters are painting as a moderate, as well as Tom Leppert, former mayor of Dallas.
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