Ted Cruz, winner of Monday’s Republican Iowa caucuses, has doubled his presidential campaign’s endorsements from Tennessee state lawmakers to 18.
The Cruz campaign has waited until Tuesday to formally release the updated list of nine new endorsements in the Tennessee legislature, seeking to display momentum after Cruz emerged as the winner in Iowa on Monday night.
Cruz, a U.S. senator from Texas who enjoys large evangelical and tea party followings, including in the Tennessee legislature, had already racked up more public endorsements from Tennessee state lawmakers than any other Republican presidential candidate. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida is second with eight.
New Cruz endorsements are Republican Sens. Janice Bowling of Tullahoma; Mark Green of Clarksville; Joey Hensley of Hohenwald; France Nicely of Strawberry Plains; Jim Tracy of Shelbyville, and Reps. Tilman Goins of Morristown; Ron Lollar of Bartlett; Billy Spivey of Lewisburg and Rick Womick of Rockvale.
Previously committed Cruz endorsements from the Tennessee legislature, announced in October, are (continue reading at Tennessean)