(From Reuters)
U.S. Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz, in a last-ditch bid to slow front-runner Donald Trump’s momentum, on Wednesday named former business executive Carly Fiorina to be his vice presidential running mate if he wins the nomination.
After suffering a series of crushing losses to Trump in nominating contests on Tuesday, Cruz praised Fiorina as a principled fighter for conservative values who knew how to create jobs and would be a valuable ally on the campaign trail.
“She is careful. She is measured. She is serious,” Cruz said. “She doesn’t get rattled.”
Fiorina, 61, dropped her own White House bid in February after a lackluster seventh-place finish in New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary. She endorsed Cruz, a 45-year-old U.S. senator from Texas, a month later and has been a sharp critic on the campaign trail of likely Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
Cruz’s unusually early announcement of a running mate appeared to be a bid to recover from Tuesday’s losses, which moved Trump closer to the 1,237 delegates he needs to win the nomination at the July 18-21 Republican convention in Cleveland. The nominee will face the Democrats’ pick in November’s general election. Read more