Sen. Ted Cruz announces presidential bid , vows to ` stand for liberty ' . 
Ted Cruz
"We -LSB- Republicans -RSB- have to win in November 2016 ," Cruz added later in the program . 
Cruz 's father , a pastor , is also expected to help the 44-year-old first-term senator make inroads with these voters . 
Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz , ticking off a litany of President Obama policies he opposes , promised Monday to return to a government by Constitution and "stand for liberty" as he officially announced his 2016 presidential bid . 
Cruz is already a familiar figure on the circuit for presidential hopefuls , having made repeated visits to the early voting states , the big conservative activist conferences and more . 
Cruz , speaking to an energetic crowd of students at Liberty University in Lynchburg , Va. , drew from his background to address his faith and what he sees for the future of the country . 
By announcing what has long been obvious , Cruz triggers a host of accounting and reporting requirements about money he is raising and how he is spending it . 
Cruz continued his pledge by telling the crowd to "imagine a president who says I will honor the Constitution and under no circumstances will Iran be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon ." 
For his announcement , Cruz bypassed Texas , which he represents in the Senate , as well as early nominating states such as New Hampshire , where Mitt Romney kicked off his own campaign for the GOP nomination in 2012 , and Iowa . 
The son of an American mother and Cuban-born father , Cruz is positioning himself to become potentially the nation 's first Hispanic president . 
While he was born in Canada , two lawyers who represented presidents from both parties at the Supreme Court recently wrote in the Harvard Law Review that they think Cruz meets the constitutional standard to run . 
Cruz spoke on the fifth anniversary of Obama 's health care law -- legislation that prompted Cruz to stand for more than 21 hours in the Senate to denounce it in a marathon speech that delighted his Tea Party constituency and other foes of the law . 
Cheers rose in the hall when Cruz reminded the crowd Monday that Liberty University filed a suit against the law right after its enactment . 
Should he fail to win the nomination or the presidency , Cruz would retain his Senate seat through 2019 . 
Cruz earlier declared his candidacy via a Twitter post early Monday , becoming the first major candidate to officially declare . 
"It 's time to get in there ," Cruz told Fox News ' Sean Hannity Monday night . 
A 30-second video accompanying the tweet featured Cruz speaking over a montage of farm fields , city skylines and American landmarks and symbols , calling on "a new generation of courageous conservatives to help make America great again ." 
By getting in early -- and at Liberty -- Cruz was hoping to claim ownership of the influential and highly vocal corner of the Republican Party for whom cultural issues are supreme . 
"I 'm ready to stand with you to lead the fight ," Cruz says as the video concludes . 
Cruz , a divisive figure in his own party , is not expected to be the sole GOP contender for long .
"We -LSB- Republicans -RSB- have to win in November 2016 ," Cruz added later in the program . 
Cruz 's father , a pastor , is also expected to help the 44-year-old first-term senator make inroads with these voters . 
Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz , ticking off a litany of President Obama policies he opposes , promised Monday to return to a government by Constitution and "stand for liberty" as he officially announced his 2016 presidential bid . 
Cruz is already a familiar figure on the circuit for presidential hopefuls , having made repeated visits to the early voting states , the big conservative activist conferences and more . 
Cruz , speaking to an energetic crowd of students at Liberty University in Lynchburg , Va. , drew from his background to address his faith and what he sees for the future of the country . 
By announcing what has long been obvious , Cruz triggers a host of accounting and reporting requirements about money he is raising and how he is spending it . 
Cruz continued his pledge by telling the crowd to "imagine a president who says I will honor the Constitution and under no circumstances will Iran be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon ." 
For his announcement , Cruz bypassed Texas , which he represents in the Senate , as well as early nominating states such as New Hampshire , where Mitt Romney kicked off his own campaign for the GOP nomination in 2012 , and Iowa . 
The son of an American mother and Cuban-born father , Cruz is positioning himself to become potentially the nation 's first Hispanic president . 
While he was born in Canada , two lawyers who represented presidents from both parties at the Supreme Court recently wrote in the Harvard Law Review that they think Cruz meets the constitutional standard to run . 
Cruz spoke on the fifth anniversary of Obama 's health care law -- legislation that prompted Cruz to stand for more than 21 hours in the Senate to denounce it in a marathon speech that delighted his Tea Party constituency and other foes of the law . 
Cheers rose in the hall when Cruz reminded the crowd Monday that Liberty University filed a suit against the law right after its enactment . 
Should he fail to win the nomination or the presidency , Cruz would retain his Senate seat through 2019 . 
Cruz earlier declared his candidacy via a Twitter post early Monday , becoming the first major candidate to officially declare . 
"It 's time to get in there ," Cruz told Fox News ' Sean Hannity Monday night . 
A 30-second video accompanying the tweet featured Cruz speaking over a montage of farm fields , city skylines and American landmarks and symbols , calling on "a new generation of courageous conservatives to help make America great again ." 
By getting in early -- and at Liberty -- Cruz was hoping to claim ownership of the influential and highly vocal corner of the Republican Party for whom cultural issues are supreme . 
"I 'm ready to stand with you to lead the fight ," Cruz says as the video concludes . 
[TGT] , a divisive figure in [TGT] own party , is not expected to be the sole GOP contender for long .