Today former state Solicitor General Ted Cruz and Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst will face off in what will likely be a close primary for the Republican nomination in Texas’ Senate race
Though Dewhurst has won statewide office three times and is supported by Texas Governor Rick Perry, a poll conducted by Public Policy Polling on Sunday shows Cruz leading Dewhurst by 10 points 52 – 42 percent, with only six percent of those polled saying they were still undecided.
And, as reported by Politico, a Dewhurst ally with knowledge of an internal survey apart from the campaigns said of Dewhurst, “It’s Nebraska, Indiana. You just smell it. He’s toast.”
The group Club for Growth, which contributed to Ted Cruz’s campaign, played a huge role in the unexpected defeat of Indiana’s six-term Republican Sen. Richard Lugar when it backed state Treasurer Richard Mourdock in the GOP primary. Another Club for Growth 2012 upset was Nebraska state Sen. Deb Fischer’s win over more well known Republican opponents. Fischer was backed by former governor Sarah Palin and former GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain. Palin has similarly endorsed Cruz.
Cruz is also backed by conservative activists and the Tea Party movement, and has support in the U.S. Senate from Rand Paul of Kentucky, Jim DeMint of South Carolina, and Mike Lee of Utah. Moreover, famous conservatives Glenn Beck and Rick Santorum have also endorsed Cruz.
Cruz addressed activists at the FreePac conference in Dallas just five days before the Senate face off, where the crowd responded enthusiastically “Yes we can!” as Cruz asked the questions: “Can we restore the U.S. Constitution? Can we retake the U.S. Senate? Can we retire Harry Reid? Can we repeal Obamacare? Can we retire Barack Obama?”
According to the President of FreedomWorks, Matt Kibbee, “A lot of people call him the next Marco Rubio.” Rubio was heavily backed by the Tea Party when he ran for and won a U.S. Senate seat in Florida in 2010.
Regardless of who wins today’s Texas Senate Republican primary, that candidate will probably be the next person to represent Texas in the U.S. Senate, as the seat is solidly Republican.
