Cruz Reports More Than $2 Million on Hand
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz's camp touted robust fundraising numbers for the first three months of 2014 on Wednesday, further fanning speculation that the freshman lawmaker will run for president in 2016.
Cruz reported raising $887,334 between three different funds: Ted Cruz for Senate, his re-election committee; Ted Cruz Victory Committee, a joint fundraising committee; and Jobs, Growth & Freedom Fund, Cruz's political action committee. The haul is more than twice the amount Cruz raised in the first quarter a year ago, when he had just joined the U.S. Senate.
Cruz reported just over $2 million on hand as of March 31 among the three funds.
Separately, the newly formed Draft Ted Cruz for President PAC reported raising $27,656 for the first quarter. The PAC was launched last month by Raz Shafer, a former Cruz staffer.
While Cruz's fundraising shows significant growth from last year, it still trails far behind Sen. Rand Paul, another possible 2016 contender who would vie for some of the same Tea Party voters as Cruz. The Kentucky Republican reported raising $1.6 million between his fundraising committees.
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