~He won Cape Girardeau County on March 15, just three days later
On March 12, Republican presidential hopeful Sen. Ted Cruz visited Southeast Missouri State University. Cruz held a rally at Academic Hall, which was open to the public. The Texas senator took the opportunity to speak about his vision for America and to contrast himself from his opponent for the Republican nomination, Donald Trump.
Hundreds of community members waited in line to hear Cruz speak, but not all who turned out were in support of the senator. A group congregated outside of Academic Hall to protest Cruz's event for various reasons.
Miranda Ballard, a student at Southeast, said she and other protesters came out to support candidates other than Cruz and to object to Southeast's decision to allow Cruz to hold a rally on campus.
"Our campus doesn't support a certain candidate," Ballard said. "And so the fact that they're having Ted Cruz come here, it's -- it isn't OK."
Cruz was introduced by attorney, political commentator and Cape Girardeau native David Limbaugh.
"I actually believe Ted Cruz can do this," Limbaugh said to the crowd. "I actually believe he can go all the way."
Cruz said the coming election would boil down to three important issues: jobs, freedom and security. He spent time describing his plans for repealing the Affordable Care Act, preserving religious liberty and abolishing the IRS after implementing a flat tax, which produced a standing ovation from the crowd.
The rally took place on the same day as the Wyoming caucus, which saw Cruz winning the state by a large margin. Before visiting Cape Girardeau, Cruz had held an event in St. Louis according to Limbaugh, who had joined the senator during his visit to Missouri.
Cruz's visit came days before Missouri's primary elections, in which Donald Trump beat Cruz by only 0.2 percent, or around 2,000 votes. Cape Girardeau County was the only county in southeast Missouri that Cruz won. Most of Cruz's votes came from the regions surrounding Kansas City, Columbia and Springfield, Missouri.
