WASHINGTON -- Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz on Monday announced his 2016 presidential bid, making him the first candidate to enter what is expected to be a crowded GOP primary.
"Today, I am running for president," Cruz told his audiences in Virginia Liberty University, "It is time for truth, it is time for liberty".
He ask people to "imagine" the benefits he can bring to Americans if he was elected president. "Imagine we rising up together, say in unison that we demand liberty."
The conservative blamed Obamacare, calling it a "failed law." He also said if elected he would repeal the law and "make health care personal and affordable."
Cruz, 44, announced his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination on twitter shortly after midnight Monday. "I'm running for President and I hope to earn your support!"
As a leader of the Tea Party movement, Cruz is popular among conservative constituencies for not shying away from challenging both U.S. President Barack Obama and his fellow Republicans in contested immigration and medicare policies.
However, with more than a dozen predominant Republicans expressing interests in the 2016 presidential bid, analysts believe Cruz has a long way to go in winning broad support in the Republican base.
According to a recent CNN/ORC poll, only four percent of Republicans and Independents who lean to the Republican party would support Cruz.
The poll also showed no potential candidates in the Republican party was favored by a significant margin among Republican voters, with the top contender Jeb Bush winning 16 percent.
Meanwhile, party support for potential Democratic candidates was predominately focused on Hillary Clinton by a rate of 62 percent in the March poll, with the second top contender vice president Joe Biden standing at 15 percent.
Clinton was also found to beat all the major potential Republican rivals in a hypothetical general election in the poll.
