Heidi Cruz

Heidi Cruz in The Woodlands, Texas on February 27, 2016.

Heidi Suzanne Cruz (née Nelson; born on August 7, 1972) is an American investment manager at Goldman Sachs. She is the spouse of Republican Texas senator and 2016 U.S. presidential candidate Ted Cruz.[1][2]

Personal life

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Heidi Suzanne Cruz was born on August 7, 1972 in San Luis Obispo, California, and grew up in a Seventh-day Adventist family. Cruz's interest in politics began when she traveled to Washington, D.C. with her parents when she was 8.[3]

She graduated with a B.A. in Economics and International Relations from Claremont McKenna College in 1994. She was active in Claremont McKenna's Republican group, but was asked to resign after spying on Bill Clinton's campaign for reelection.[3] In 1995, she received a Masters of European Business from Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management in Brussels, Belgium and in 2000, she graduated with a M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.[4]

Heidi married Ted Cruz on May 27, 2001. Heidi met Ted Cruz while the two were working together on George W. Bush's 2000 presidential campaign.[5] In April 2008, Cruz gave birth to her first child, Caroline Camille Cruz. Her second daughter, Catherine Christiane Cruz, was born in 2011.[6]

Career

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In 2003, she worked for the Bush administration on economic policy,[7] eventually becoming the director for the Western Hemisphere on the National Security Council under National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice in 2003. She left Washington DC in 2004 to support Ted Cruz's run for elective office in Texas.[8]

Cruz has worked for three investment banks, JP Morgan Chase, Merrill Lynch, and Goldman Sachs.[9][10]

In 2005, she joined Goldman Sachs, serving as a private wealth manager[11] and is currently the Region Head for the Southwest Region in the Investment Management Division of Goldman Sachs in Houston.[12]

2016 presidential election

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Ted Cruz said that the decision for him to run for president was difficult for his wife, because she was busy with her business career and raising their 2 children. She changed her mind after listening to a CD from her sister-in-law.[3]

Cruz was involved in her husband's run for president. She made a few public appearances without him to help with the campaign.[13] She also ran a lunch for Republican women in Reno, Nevada a few days before the Nevada primary.[14]

References

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  1. ↑ Zezima, Katie; Post, The Washington. "Heidi Cruz Tries to Close Her Biggest Deal: Making Ted Cruz President, by Katie Zezima, The Washington Post". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
  2. ↑ "Ted Cruz Fast Facts - CNN.com". CNN. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Zezima, Katie (January 8, 2015). "Meet Heidi Cruz: Hard-charging career woman, but first a loyal spouse".
  4. ↑ "Board of Directors & Staff | Greater Houston Partnership". www.houston.org. houston.org. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
  5. ↑ "Board Member Bios: Heidi Cruz". Greater Houston Partnership. Retrieved August 16, 2013.
  6. ↑ "Ted Cruz's daughter, 2: 'I want to work with daddy'". The Washingtion Times. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
  7. ↑ "Heidi Cruz". Archived from the original on 2014-07-07. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  8. ↑ "Who is Heidi Cruz?". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
  9. ↑ Harlan, Chico (January 29, 2016). "Ambition enough for two". Washington Post. Washington, DC. Retrieved March 29, 2016. But she wanted a job in banking, having previously worked at J.P. Morgan.
  10. ↑ Pemberton, Patrick S. (April 18, 2015). "Heidi Cruz, a San Luis Obispo native, campaigns now as wife of a presidential candidate". The Fresno Bee. Fresno, California. Retrieved March 24, 2016. While he aspired to high public office, his wife eventually bowed out of government, taking business jobs with private corporations such as JPMorgan Chase and investment banking firm Goldman Sachs.
  11. ↑ Gross, Daniel (January 14, 2016). "For Ted Cruz and Chris Christie, Their Wives Are Their 'Secret Weapon'". fortune.com.
  12. ↑ Moore, Michael J. "Cruz's Wife Heidi to Take Unpaid Leave From Goldman". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
  13. ↑ Sain, Aurora (October 21, 2015). "Republicans seek military caucus vote". The Record Courier.
  14. ↑ "Heidi Cruz to headline Washoe Republican women luncheon". Reno Gazette-Journal. February 13, 2016.