While most Americans have heard about presidential candidates like Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and maybe even Jeb Bush, there is another candidate who may sneak up from behind to take the republican lead: Ted Cruz.

Who is Ted Cruz?
Ted Cruz is a junior republican senator from Texas. After becoming interested in politics and economics at a young age, Cruz attended Princeton University and Harvard Law School.

Where does he stand on the issues?
Cruz is a conservative Tea Party republican who is deeply religious. He believes in a free market economy and would like to repeal Obamacare and abolish the IRS along with other government agencies.

Ted Cruz said, “The American free market system is the greatest engine for prosperity and opportunity that the world has ever seen. Freedom works.”

He believes marriage should be defined by states and opposes abortion. Immigration-wise, he wants to prevent undocumented immigrants from staying in the US.

Cruz told Univision, “A path to citizenship for those who are here illegally in my view is unfair to those waiting sometimes a decade in line to come here.”

Anything else I should know about him?
Ted Cruz has a reputation of being a highly unlikeable person. Many people who have worked with personally claimed it was an unpleasant experience.

English teacher Mr. Tom Gaffigan said, “His roommate at Princeton said the last person in the world he’d want to be president is Ted Cruz. I taught with a guy at Madeira who was in law school with him and he speaks the same way.”

Beyond what many would call extremist behavior, Cruz has made an impression on the American people as a conservative powerhouse.