--- title: Ted Cruz 2016 Presidential Run and the Natural-Born Citizen Clause description: Ted Cruz isn't the first White House contender to have been born outside of the United States canonical: https://time.com/3754408/ted-cruz-history-natural-born/ author: Lily Rothman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-03-23T18:53:34.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:40:58.812Z article:section: History og:title: What the Supreme Court Could Say on Ted Cruz's Canadian Past og:description: The 'natural born citizen' clause has never really been tested. og:url: https://time.com/3754408/ted-cruz-history-natural-born/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c08a2a02f7bcc1b/698784c80b72e31b726de4de/cruz.jpeg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Ted Cruz og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: What the Supreme Court Could Say on Ted Cruz's Canadian Past twitter:description: The 'natural born citizen' clause has never really been tested. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c08a2a02f7bcc1b/698784c80b72e31b726de4de/cruz.jpeg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # What the Supreme Court Could Say About Ted Cruz's Canadian Past ## Video: Real Time: Ted Cruz Rallies The Right At CPAC 2015 [Watch (HLS stream): Real Time: Ted Cruz Rallies The Right At CPAC 2015](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/KFQHEvq4.m3u8) (0:59)  _Published 2015-02-26. Ted Cruz fired up the conservative base during his speech on the first day of CPAC 2015._  by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Mar 23, 2015 6:53 PM UTC  US Senator Ted Cruz( R-TX) smiles at the crowd while delivering remarks announcing his candidacy for the Republican nomination to run for US president March 23, 2015, inside the full Vine Center at Liberty University, in Lynchburg, Va. US Senator Ted Cruz( R-TX) smiles at the crowd while delivering remarks announcing his candidacy for the Republican nomination to run for US president March 23, 2015, inside the full Vine Center at Liberty University, in Lynchburg, Va.Paul J. Richards—AFP/Getty Images  by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Mar 23, 2015 6:53 PM UTC When Sen. Ted Cruz launched his presidential campaign Monday at Liberty University, he began by telling [his parents’ stories ](http://time.com/3754153/ted-cruz-campaign-launch-liberty-university/)of immigration from Cuba, on his father’s part, and overcoming the odds at home, on his mother’s part. One much-discussed element of Cruz’s personal story, however, got only a brief nod: “When I was three, my father decided to leave my mother and me,” Cruz told the audience. “We were living in Calgary at the time.” Calgary, though part of Cruz’s American story, is not in the United States; it’s in Alberta, Canada. Though Cruz was born in Alberta, he only learned as an adult that his birthplace gave him Canadian citizenship, which he[ officially renounced](http://time.com/2854513/ted-cruz-canadian-citizenship/) last summer. Though it’s a common misconception, being born in Canada does not necessarily exclude Cruz, the child of an American citizen, from the White House. In fact, he’s one of many potential presidents over the years who have been born abroad. The confusing constitutional clause behind that misconception — “No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President,” per [Article II](http://constitutioncenter.org/constitution/the-articles/article-ii-the-executive-branch) — most recently made news with the campaigns of John McCain, who was born in the Panama Canal Zone. As the New York _Times_ [laid out during his 2008 campaign](http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/28/us/politics/28mccain.html?%5Fr=1&hp&oref=slogin), being born to a military officer in a military zone, as McCain was, was seen as largely uncontroversial, even though legal experts still debate whether “natural born” means “born in the U.S.” or merely “not naturalized later in life.” The real issue is that the Supreme Court has never really had to say either way. The natural-born citizen qualification is untested in practice, and it’s not even clear who would have legal standing to challenge a president like McCain or Cruz on that matter. ### See the 2016 Candidates Looking Very Presidential  Sen. Ted Cruz is surrounded by stars and stripes at the 2014 Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C. on September 26, 2014. Mark Peterson—Redux  Hillary Clinton Hillary Clinton gazes pensively into the distance at Iowa Senator Tom Harken'a annual Steak Fry in Indianola, Iowa on September 14, 2014. Brooks Kraft—Corbis for TIME  Jeb Bush Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush flashes a power watch before giving his keynote address at the National Summit on Education Reform in Washington on Nov. 20, 2014. Susan Walsh—AP  Bernie Sanders waves to supporters after officially announcing his candidacy for the U.S. presidency during an event at Waterfront Park in Burlington, Vermont, on May 26, 2015. Win McNamee—Getty Images  Chris Christie New Jersey Governor Chris Christie strikes a presidential power stance at the ceremony for the opening of the 206 bypass in Hillsborough, New Jersey on October 28, 2013. Mark Peterson—Redux  Former Hewlett-Packard Co Chief Executive Officer Carly Fiorina listens to her introduction from the side of the stage at the Freedom Summit in Des Moines, Iowa on Jan. 24, 2015. Jim Young—Reuters  Rand Paul Sen. Rand Paul works a crowd during a campaign stop on October 24, 2014 in McDonough, Georgia. Jessica McGowan—Getty Images  Rick Perry Texas Gov. Rick Perry looks powerfully patriotic during the National Anthem before an NCAA college football game on Nov. 27, 2014, in College Station, Texas. David J. Phillip—AP  Bobby Jindal Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal looks to the future during The Family Leadership Summit on Aug. 9, 2014, in Ames, Iowa. Charlie Neibergall—AP  Martin O'Malley Maryland Governor Martin OíMalley ponders decorating ideas in front of his possible future home on CBS's Face the Nation on Feb. 23, 2014. Chris Usher—AP  Marco Rubio Sen. Marco Rubio looks determined the morning after the State of the Union address in Washington, D.C. on January 29, 2014. Melissa Golden—Redux  Ben CarsonBen Carson at the Conservative Political Action Committee annual conference on March 8, 2014. Susan Walsh—AP  Jim Webb Retiring Sen. Jim Webb imitates the presidential wave during a rally in Virginia Beach, Va. on Sept. 27, 2012. Steve Helber—AP  John Kasich Ohio Gov. John Kasich practices his presidential victory pose at the Ohio Republican Party celebration on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2014, in Columbus, Ohio. Tony Dejak—AP  Rick Santorum Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum looks resolute at CPAC, the Conservative Political Action Conference on March 7, 2014. Brooks Kraft—Corbis  Scott Walker Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker practices the presidential point on March 3, 2014 in Milwaukee. Jeffrey Phelps—AP  Mike Huckabee Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee fine-tunes his presidential oratory at the Conservative Political Action Committee annual conference in National Harbor, Md. on March 7, 2014. Susan Walsh—AP  Lincoln Chafee, Former Rhode Island Governor, poses for a selfie with a student after announcing he will seek the Democratic nomination for president in Arlington, Va. on June 3, 2015. Jonathan Ernst—Reuters  Lindsey Graham Lindsey Graham announced his plans to join the 2016 presidential race. Alex Wong—Getty Images  George Pataki Former New York governor George Pataki listens to a question at the First in the Nation Republican Leadership Conference in Nashua, New Hampshire, in this April 17, 2015 file photo. Brian Snyder—Reuters Further, as TIME explained in [a 1962 article](http://time.com/vault/issue/1962-11-16/page/24) about the candidacy of George Romney (Mitt Romney’s father, who was born in Mexico because his grandfather had fled there to avoid U.S. antipolygamy laws), that hypothetical legal challenger would have a tough case: --- > “” --- In theory, that 1790 law _could_ be unconstitutional too, were the natural-born citizen issue to make it to the Supreme Court — but, on this count, Cruz has an even harsher challenger to overcome. Nobody who would have provided the opportunity to put the law to the test has ever actually won the election. Other born-abroad politicians in the _Times_ round-up include a Connecticut Senator born in Paris and FDR’s son Franklin Jr., who was born in Canada. The closest the country has ever come to having a President not born on its soil (or, alternatively, living there at the time of the founding) was in the late 1800s, with Chester A. Arthur — maybe. Arthur ended up in the White House in 1881, having served as the Vice-President for James Garfield, who died of complications from wounds sustained during an attempted (and ultimately successful) assassination. Though Arthur’s [official biograph](https://www.whitehouse.gov/1600/presidents/chesterarthur)y at the White House lists his birthdate as 1829 and the place as Fairfield, Vt., both the year and the place have been challenged over the years. As the Associated Press explained in [a 2009 story](http://www.boston.com/news/local/vermont/articles/2009/08/17/chester%5Farthur%5Frumor%5Fstill%5Flingers%5Fin%5Fvermont/) about the Chester A. Arthur Historic Site — his purported birthplace — rivals claimed that Arthur was actually born in Canada, where his mother’s family lived. Records from the 1820s were predictably shoddy, and there has never been any way to prove 100% where Arthur was born. Should Cruz win the race in 2016, he’ll be the first President definitely born in Canada — and the first definite chance, unlikely though it may be, for the Supreme Court to test and define the clause in question. _Read next:_ [_How Ted Cruz is Using Spanish in His Presidential Campaign_](http://time.com/3754151/ted-cruz-spanish-campaign/?iid=time%5Freadnext) [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/?sl%5Fautoplay=true&xid=spl-fullbrief-article) Ted Cruz 2016 Presidential Run and the Natural-Born Citizen Clause ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3754408/ted-cruz-history-natural-born/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3754408/ted-cruz-history-natural-born/"},"headline":"What the Supreme Court Could Say About Ted Cruz's Canadian Past","datePublished":"2015-03-23T18:53:34.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:40:58.812Z","description":"The 'natural born citizen' clause has never really been tested","url":"https://time.com/3754408/ted-cruz-history-natural-born/","keywords":["politics","Election","campaign","ted cruz"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c08a2a02f7bcc1b/698784c80b72e31b726de4de/cruz.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Lily Rothman","jobTitle":"Rothman is managing editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/"}],"articleSection":"History","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c08a2a02f7bcc1b/698784c80b72e31b726de4de/cruz.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Ted Cruz","caption":"US-VOTE-REPUBLICANS","creditText":"Paul J. Richards—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/history/","name":"History"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/politics/","name":"politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3754408/ted-cruz-history-natural-born/","name":"What the Supreme Court Could Say About Ted Cruz's Canadian Past"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Real Time: Ted Cruz Rallies The Right At CPAC 2015","description":"Ted Cruz fired up the conservative base during his speech on the first day of CPAC 2015.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/KFQHEvq4/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-02-26T21:46:04.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/KFQHEvq4.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3754408/ted-cruz-history-natural-born/","duration":"PT59S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3754408/ted-cruz-history-natural-born/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```