--- description: "We must overcome the divisiveness and vulgarity Donald Trump has brought into the political arena" title: Jeb Bush Endorses Ted Cruz image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt06675d1dd0c681bc/69888c243c1639168845c8a6/bush-cruz.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [2016 Election](/tag/2016-election/) ## 2016 Election Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Jeb Bush Endorses Ted Cruz by [Sarah Begley](/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 23, 2016 11:26 AM CUT  Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush endorsed Texas Sen. Ted Cruz for president. They are seen here shaking hands on Feb. 13, 2016, in Greenville, S.C. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush endorsed Texas Sen. Ted Cruz for president. They are seen here shaking hands on Feb. 13, 2016, in Greenville, S.C.Spencer Platt—Getty Images by [Sarah Begley](/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 23, 2016 11:26 AM CUT Former Republican candidate Jeb Bush [endorsed](https://www.facebook.com/jebbush/posts/847372542058457 "undefined") Ted Cruz for President on Wednesday. In a [Facebook post](https://www.facebook.com/jebbush/posts/847372542058457 "undefined") announcing his decision, Bush detailed his reasons for backing the Texas senator, calling him “a consistent, principled conservative who has demonstrated the ability to appeal to voters and win primary contests.” ### See Some of the Most Interesting 2016 Endorsements  New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie endorsed business Donald Trump for president on Feb. 26\. Here, the candidates greeted each other during a commercial break in a Feb. 6 Republican presidential debate. Joe Raedle—Getty Images  Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush endorsed Texas Sen. Ted Cruz for president. They are seen here shaking hands on Feb. 13, 2016, in Greenville, S.C. Spencer Platt—Getty Images  Rapper Killer Mike, left, has endorsed Democratic presidential candidate U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, (I-VT). Joshua Lott—Getty Images  Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin endorsed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Jan. 19, 2016. Aaron P. Bernstein—Getty Images  Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush shakes hands with South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham during a news conference in which Graham endorsed Bush for president in North Charleston, S.C. on Jan. 15, 2016. Andrew Harrer—Bloomberg/Getty Images  Screenwriter and actress Lena Dunham supports Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Here she speaks at a Hillary Clinton campaign office on Jan. 8, 2016 in Manchester, N.H. Scott Eisen—Getty Images  Republican Presidential hopeful and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has the support of actor Chuck Norris, right. Justin Sullivan—Getty Images  This still image made from video provided by the Cruz campaign via YouTube shows presidential candidate Ted Cruz. In the video, Cruz is endorsed by "Duck Dynasty" star Phil Robertson. Cruz campaign/YouTube/AP  Kim Kardashian and Kanye West have publicly supported Hillary Clinton. Michel Dufour—WireImage  Entertainer Tony Orlando performed during Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee's announcement of his candidacy for the 2016 presidential race. Matt Sullivan—Getty Images  Philosopher and academic Cornel West, right, endorses Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Melina Mara—The Washington Post/Getty Images  Fighter Vitor Belfort, seen during a workout, has endorsed neurosurgeon Ben Carson. Chris Trotman—Getty Images  Singer Katy Perry performed during a rally for Hillary Clinton, who she publicly supports. Daniel Acker—Bloomberg/Getty Images Bush also drew attention to what he considers the Republican party’s need to back a nominee other than the current frontrunner, writing, “For the sake of our party and country, we must overcome the divisiveness and vulgarity Donald Trump has brought into the political arena or we will certainly lose our chance to defeat the Democratic nominee, most likely Hillary Clinton, this fall.” The news comes the [morning after](http://time.com/4268739/arizona-primary-results-utah-caucus-donald-trump-ted-cruz/?xid=homepage "undefined") Cruz saw a big win in the Utah caucus, while Trump won in Arizona. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4268888/jeb-bush-endorses-ted-cruz/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4268888/jeb-bush-endorses-ted-cruz/"},"headline":"Jeb Bush Endorses Ted Cruz","datePublished":"2016-03-23T11:26:40.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:00:13.525Z","description":"\"We must overcome the divisiveness and vulgarity Donald Trump has brought into the political arena\"","url":"https://time.com/4268888/jeb-bush-endorses-ted-cruz/","keywords":["2016 Election","2016 Election topic"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt06675d1dd0c681bc/69888c243c1639168845c8a6/bush-cruz.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sarah Begley","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/sarah-begley/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt06675d1dd0c681bc/69888c243c1639168845c8a6/bush-cruz.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Republican Presidential Candidates Debate In Greenville, South Carolina","caption":"Republican Presidential Candidates Debate In Greenville, South Carolina","creditText":"Spencer Platt—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/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/2016-election/","name":"2016 Election"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4268888/jeb-bush-endorses-ted-cruz/","name":"Jeb Bush Endorses Ted Cruz"}}]}] ```