Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz is vetting Carly Fiorina as a potential vice presidential pick, a Fiorina aide confirmed to The Hill.
The only woman to run for president this cycle as a Republican, Fiorina has been an active surrogate for the Texas senator since she endorsed him in March, regularly hitting the trail with him and fundraising on his behalf.
{mosads}The Weekly Standard first reported the move, noting that former Fiorina deputy campaign manager Sarah Isgur Flores told the outlet she had given the Cruz campaign financial disclosures as part of the vetting process.
Chad Sweet, the Cruz campaign national chairman, confirmed the move on CNN Monday.
“Any responsible future leader of the free world has to be looking at having a potential successor in a vice president,” he said.
“He is vetting a number of solid candidates, and certainly Ms. Fiorina is absolutely one of them. She’s one of the most talented business leaders of modern time and she’s been a great supporter.”
Fiorina’s bid for the White House was defined by her dogged criticism of Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton, which came from the unique perspective of her being the only other female in the race. Many of her debate answers pivoted back to attacks on Clinton, whom she repeatedly criticized for her use of a private email server.
Fiorina could give Cruz a potent messenger to attack the likely Democratic nominee, assuming the Texas senator is able to upset Donald Trump at a contested Republican National Convention in July. And he likely hopes she’ll be able to help woo female voters away from Clinton and to the Republican ticket.
But Fiorina had limited success in the Republican primary battle, bowing out after a poor showing in New Hampshire, where she finished a distant seventh place despite putting a great deal of her resources into the state.
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