See Ted Cruz’s Life in Photos

ted-cruz-life-career-1
Rafael Bienvenido Cruz with Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz as an infant, early 1970s.Ted Cruz Campaign
ted-cruz-life-career-2
A young Ted Cruz, 1970s.Ted Cruz Campaign
ted-cruz-life-career-3
Ted Cruz in high school at Second Baptist School in Houston, late 1980s.Ted Cruz Campaign
ted-cruz-life-career-4
Ted Cruz and David Panton, debate teammates and close friends at Princeton University in Princeton, N.J. on June 5, 1992. Robert P. Matthews—Princeton University
ted-cruz-life-career-5
Ted Cruz on election night at Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Mass. on Nov. 3, 1992.Ted Cruz Campaign
ted-cruz-life-career-6
Ted Cruz, Solicitor General of Texas, addresses the press outside the Supreme Court after defending the redistricting of Texas, in Washington on March 1, 2006.Kevin Clark—Washington Post/Getty Images
ted-cruz-life-career-7
Republican Senate nominee Ted Cruz talks to a crowd of local supporters at the Taylor County Republican Headquarters in Abilene, Texas on Oct. 18, 2012.Joy Lewis—AP
ted-cruz-life-career-8
Ted Cruz, Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, holds hands with his wife Heidi Cruz as he watches polls with his campaign team, friends and family, May 29, 2012.Nick de la Torre—AP
ted-cruz-life-career-9
Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Ted Cruz, left, raises his hand with his father Rafael, right, while holding his daughter Caroline during a victory speech after being elected in Houston on Nov. 6, 2012.David J. Phillip—AP
ted-cruz-life-career-10
Ted Cruz speaks during the Republican National Convention at the Tampa Bay Times Forum in Tampa, Fla., Aug. 28, 2012.Josh Haner—The New York Times/Redux
ted-cruz-life-career-11
Vice President Joe Biden administers the Senate Oath to Sen. Ted Cruz accompanied by his wife Heidi and daughters Caroline and Catherine, during a mock swearing in ceremony on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 3, 2013.Evan Vucci—AP
ted-cruz-life-career-12
Sen. Ted Cruz speaks to reporters after his marathon speech on the Senate floor for more than 21 hours against Obamacare, preceding a government shutdown, on Capitol Hill in Washington on Sept. 25, 2013.Mark Wilson—Getty Images
ted-cruz-life-career-13
Sen. Ted Cruz follows through after shooting at a pheasant during a hunt in Akron, Iowa, Oct. 26, 2013.Nati Harnik—AP
ted-cruz-life-career-14
Ted Cruz sports a Winston Churchill temporary tattoo as an April Fool's joke for Fox & Friends morning show on Apr. 1, 2014.Melissa Golden—The New York Times/Redux
ted-cruz-life-career-15
Ted Cruz, his wife Heidi, and their two daughters, Catherine and Caroline, wave on stage after he announced his campaign for president, the first candidate to officially enter the race, in Lynchburg, Va. on March. 23, 2015.Andrew Harnik—AP
ted-cruz-life-career-16
Republican presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz waits backstage before addressing a legislative luncheon held as part of the "Road to Majority" conference in Washington on June 18, 2015.Carlos Barria—Reuters

More Must-Reads from TIME

Contact us at letters@time.com