Texas Gov. Rick Perry endorses Ted Cruz

Rick Perry, the longest-serving governor in Texas history, according to The Dallas Morning News, has endorsed conservative Texas Sen. Ted Cruz for president.

The move marks the first endorsement from a candidate forced out of the Republican race.

Perry had long made the case that only governors had the executive experience to serve as commander-in-chief before dropping out of the 2016 contest last year.

In a 75-second video posted this morning by Perry and the Cruz campaign, Perry said – without mentioning candidate frontrunner Donald Trump by name – that it was important for Republicans to support a consistent conservative. Perry had become critical of Trump before exiting the race.

Read more from The Dallas Morning News.