Ted Cruz
RepublicanU.S. Senator, TX| Age | 55 (b. 1970-12-22) |
| Gender | Male |
| In office since | 2013-01-03 (~13 yrs) |
| Race / ethnicity | Hispanic (Cuban-American father, Irish-Italian-American mother) |
| Religion | Southern Baptist (Christian) |
| Education | B.A. Public Policy, Princeton University (1992, cum laude); J.D., Harvard Law School (1995, magna cum laude); editor of Harvard Law Review; founder of Harvard Latino Law Review |
| Prior occupation | Attorney; law clerk to Chief Justice William Rehnquist (1996); Associate Deputy Attorney General, U.S. DOJ; Domestic Policy Advisor, Bush-Cheney 2000 campaign; Director of Policy Planning, FTC (2001–2003); Solicitor General of Texas (2003–2008) |
| Military service | No |
| Birthplace | Calgary, Alberta, Canada (foreign-born) |
| Languages | English, Spanish |
| Marital status | Married — Heidi Nelson Cruz |
| Children | 2 |
| Residence | Houston, Texas (River Oaks neighborhood) |
| Notable relatives | Father: Rafael Cruz, Cuban-born pastor and political surrogate; Mother: Eleanor Elizabeth Wilson Cruz |
Pending research: openly lgbtq.
Career & politics
| First elected | 2012 |
| Previous offices | Solicitor General of Texas (2003–2008) · Director of Policy Planning, Federal Trade Commission (2001–2003) · Associate Deputy Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice · Law Clerk, Chief Justice William Rehnquist, U.S. Supreme Court (1996) |
| Committees | Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation (Chairman) · Senate Committee on the Judiciary (Member; Chairman, Subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights) · Senate Committee on Foreign Relations (Member; Chairman, Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health Policy) · Senate Committee on Rules and Administration (Member) |
| Leadership | Chairman, Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation (119th Congress, 2025–present) |
| Ideology | Strongly conservative; rates among the most conservative senators by Club for Growth (100% in 2013, 92% in 2014), ACU, and NTU (95% in 2013). DW-NOMINATE places Cruz far right of the Republican median. Tea Party–aligned; constitutional originalist. |
| Signature legislation | TAKE IT DOWN Act (S.146, 2025) — criminalizes non-consensual intimate imagery including AI deepfakes; signed into law May 2025 (co-led with Sen. Amy Klobuchar) · FEC v. Ted Cruz for Senate (2022) — Supreme Court case originating from Cruz's challenge to post-election loan repayment cap; Court ruled 6-3 in Cruz's favor, striking down the $250,000 repayment limit as unconstitutional |
Financial
Net worth: disclosed $-1,721,958–$9,630,995 (2023) · estimate
| BlackRock LifePath Index 2035 Fund Institutional (LIJIX) | fund · $1–$5,000,000 · 2024 |
| Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (GS) | stock · $1–$5,000,000 · 2024 |
| Morgan Lewis Cash Balance Retirement Plan | other · $1–$1,000,000 · 2024 |
| Vanguard Target Retirement 2035 Trust I | fund · $1–$500,000 · 2024 |
| Houston, TX home (River Oaks neighborhood) | real_estate · $2,000,000–$2,000,000 · 2023 |
Top donors: Veritas Energy ($219,200)
Top industries: Oil & Gas · Securities & Investment · Finance, Insurance & Real Estate · Lawyers & Lobbyists · Energy
Scandals & crimes ledger
resolved — FEC Fine for Misreporting $1.064M in Campaign Loans as Personal Funds (2012 Campaign)
The FEC (MURs 7001-7003, 7009) found that Ted Cruz's 2012 Senate campaign committee, Ted Cruz for Senate, misreported the source of $1,064,000 in loans on Schedule C, listing them as coming from Cruz's 'personal funds' rather than a $800,000 margin loan against a Goldman Sachs brokerage account held jointly with his wife Heidi Cruz and a $264,000 Citibank line of credit. The campaign entered a conciliation agreement, admitted the omissions were inadvertent, paid a $35,000 civil penalty, and agreed to amend its filings. The Commission voted 4-0 to accept the agreement and close the file.
resolved — FEC and Senate Ethics Complaints Over iHeartMedia Podcast Deal
Watchdog groups End Citizens United and Campaign Legal Center filed FEC and Senate Ethics Committee complaints in 2024 alleging Cruz violated campaign finance law and Senate ethics rules via his podcast syndication deal with iHeartMedia, which funneled over $630,000 in podcast advertising revenue to the pro-Cruz 'Truth and Courage' super PAC. Complainants alleged Cruz directed the payments and that iHeartMedia's contributions constituted illegal corporate contributions. The FEC dismissed the complaint in a 5-1 decision (ruling announced February 2025), finding no evidence Cruz solicited, directed, or controlled the PAC payments. The Senate Ethics Committee separately informed CLC in February 2024 that it found Cruz had not acted improperly regarding the iHeartMedia gift/honoraria allegation.