Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz plans to announce on Monday that he will run for president in 2016, which will make him the first from either party to officially enter the race.
According to an aide, Cruz will announce his candidacy during a morning speech at the evangelical Christian school Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., reported The Houston Chronicle.
Cruz, a Tea Party favorite, is known for his unorthodox approach to politics, and his decision to launch a bid for the White House is no different. Presidential hopefuls usually launch a campaign from their home state after forming an exploratory committee, and do so at the beginning of a new fundraising period in order to maximize fundraising time before filing an initial report, noted Time.
Because of his early announcement, Cruz will have to file his fundraising report in mid-April, while others won't have to disclose their finances until mid-July. Cruz will also be restricted to raising $5,400 in contributions per person, while non-declared candidates like former Florida governor Jeb Bush can raise millions for their political organizations, according to Reuters.
According to The Chronicle, Cruz is setting a goal of raising between $40 million and $50 million, and hopes to defeat the Republican party establishment choice by appealing to both social conservatives and libertarian-leaning party members.
A slew of other GOP candidates are expected to announce their candidacy in the next few weeks, including Bush, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, along with Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky and Marco Rubio of Florida. So far, these candidates' efforts have been largely limited to presidential exploratory committees and to courting donors and voters in states like Iowa and New Hampshire.
