Utah Sen. Mike Lee pledged his support for Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s presidential bid on Thursday.
“He’s going to move forward and unite our party,” Lee told reporters in Florida. “It’s time for us to recognize that we don’t have to settle anymore. … It’s time to elect Ted Cruz as the next president of the United States.”
Lee announced the decision hours before the next GOP debate on CNN, which will take place in Miami, Florida. The endorsement is damaging for Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who counts Lee as a friend and has staked his presidential campaign on winning his home state’s primary.
Lee previously told the Washington Examiner that he would be willing to endorse either Cruz or Rubio if they got to a one-on-one matchup against Donald Trump. While both candidates remain in the race, Lee’s decision suggests he thinks Rubio’s path to the nomination is nonexistent.
The Utah senator’s endorsement comes one day after former GOP presidential candidate Carly Fiorina picked Cruz. Support from such prominent conservatives suggests Cruz may have begun coalescing anti-Trump support around his campaign.
