Nation's preeminent organization dedicated to marriage and religious liberty says Cruz will be a "champion" for restoring and promoting marriage and religious freedom

Contact: Paul Bothwell, National Organization for Marriage, 202-457-8060 ext 105, pbothwell@nationformarriage.org

WASHINGTON, Dec. 9, 2015 /Christian Newswire/ -- The National Organization for Marriage (NOM) today announced they have endorsed Sen. Ted Cruz for president of the United States. NOM called Cruz a "proven champion" in support of marriage and religious liberty, and pledged they will do everything in their power to support his election.

"Sen. Ted Cruz is a proven champion for marriage and religious freedom and someone we can absolutely count on to fight to restore marriage to our nation's laws and defend the religious liberty of the tens of millions of Americans who believe that marriage is the union of one man and one woman," said Brian Brown, NOM's president. "Sen. Cruz has not only signed NOM's presidential marriage pledge committing to take specific actions as president, but he has personally authored the pending federal marriage amendment to restore the right of states to define marriage as one man/one woman. Moreover, he has spoken out consistently and forcefully on the campaign trail as an advocate of true marriage. We are pleased to endorse him and will do everything in our power to support his election."

NOM issued a Presidential Marriage Pledge to all the Republican candidates for president asking them to commit to take five specific actions as president, including working to overturn the US Supreme Court's narrow ruling redefining marriage, a ruling that dozens of legal scholars have called "illegitimate" and "anti-constitutional." The pledge was signed by Cruz, Dr. Ben Carson, Sen. Rick Santorum and Gov. Bobby Jindal. While not signing NOM's pledge, Gov. Mike Huckabee issued his own pledge to the American people to fight for marriage, and Sen. Marco Rubio has spoken out powerfully in his campaign in support on marriage.

"The decision to endorse in the Republican primary race was a very difficult one," Brown said. "There are many tremendous candidates remaining who have made support for marriage a pillar of their careers in public service, including Sen. Rick Santorum, Gov. Mike Huckabee, Dr. Ben Carson and Sen. Marco Rubio. We realize that our endorsement of Sen. Cruz will be very disappointing to them. Should any of these candidates emerge as the Republican nominee we would enthusiastically support them. However, there is a real danger that conservatives will split the vote allowing someone like Donald Trump to emerge from the crowded field, which would be disastrous. Sen. Cruz has run the best campaign thus far, racking up endorsements and financial resources and climbing in the polls. We believe he has the best chance of uniting conservatives and going on to win the nomination."

NOM has a long track record of activism in support of traditional marriage across the country, and especially in key early voting states like Iowa and New Hampshire, where they have tens of thousands of supporters. The group was a principal player in the successful 2010 effort to remove three sitting Iowa Supreme Court Justices, including the state's Chief Justice and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in that successful effort. They have co-sponsored several prominent presidential candidate forums this year in Iowa, providing thousands of Iowans the opportunity to hear directly from the candidates. The group also has invested heavily in New Hampshire political endeavors, where they worked to elect dozens of state legislators in recent years and were influential in the election of US Sen. Kelly Ayotte in 2010.

"Beginning in Iowa, and going on from there, we will do everything in our power to support Sen. Cruz and urge all our supporters to coalesce around his candidacy," Brown said. "It is imperative that a proven marriage champion emerge from Iowa and go on to capture the Republican nomination. Too much is on the line for supporters of marriage to sit on the sidelines and take the risk that the Republican nominee is someone who will not fight to restore marriage to the law in our nation. We are at a historic moment, and we urge all conservatives to unite behind Sen. Ted Cruz, a man of principle we can all count on to give his all to the cause of marriage and religious freedom."

To schedule an interview with Brian Brown, please contact Paul Bothwell, pbothwell@nationformarriage.org, (202) 457-8060 x-105.

Paid for by The National Organization for Marriage, Brian Brown, president. 2029 K Street NW, Suite 300 Washington, DC 20006, not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee