Ted Cruz
Republican US senator for Texas since 2013; chairs the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.
Ted Cruz is not on the 2026 ballot, but his record sets the Texas benchmark: on 27 May forecasters moved the state's Senate race and TX-35 to Leans Republican, citing a district Trump won by ten points and Cruz by under four.
Last refreshed: 1 October 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Why does Ted Cruz's own election record make Texas Senate competitive in 2026?
Timeline for Ted Cruz
Mentioned in: Texas PAC's Senate spending hits $131.5m
US Midterms 2026Texas Senate, TX-35 both slip to Leans Republican
US Midterms 2026Mentioned in: Crypto PAC pulls Paxton ad under GOP pressure
US Midterms 2026Senate Mandates NASA Evaluate Crew Rescue
Artemis II Moon MissionBackground
Cruz has been a Republican senator for Texas since 2013, re-elected in 2018 and 2024, with a term that runs to January 2031. A Harvard Law graduate, he clerked for Chief Justice William Rehnquist and served as Solicitor General of Texas before entering the Senate, and he lost the 2016 Republican presidential nomination to Donald Trump.
He chairs the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, which writes NASA's authorisation. On 4 March 2026 the committee passed a NASA bill requiring the agency to evaluate ways to rescue crews in orbit and from the Moon, a capability its Inspector General had found did not exist.
In the 2026 midterms his narrow wins are the measure of Republican weakness in Texas. Sabato's Crystal Ball pointed to his under-four-point margin in TX-35, against Trump's ten, when it moved the district and the Senate race for John Cornyn's seat to Leans Republican.