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Ted Cruz officially endorses Donald Trump in Facebook post

<p>After holding out for months, Republican Senator Ted Cruz has finally endorsed his party's nominee for president.</p><p>Cruz was one of the last candidates left standing against Donald Trump in the GOP primary, and he was heavily booed after <a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/here-s-what-ted-cruz-said-about-not-endorsing-trump-at-the-rnc/" target="_blank">he refused</a> to openly support Trump during the <a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?412401-1/day-three-republican-national-convention" target="_blank">Republican National Convention</a>.</p><p><b>SEE MORE: <a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/ted-cruz-calls-on-us-to-end-refugee-program-fight-terrorism/">Ted Cruz Wants America To 'Take Off The Blinders' To Fight Terrorism</a></b></p><p>"Vote your conscience. Vote for candidates up and down the ticket who you trust," Cruz said during his convention speech. </p><p>But in <a href="https://m.facebook.com/tedcruzpage/posts/10154476728267464" target="_blank">a new Facebook post</a>, Cruz emphasizes that stopping Hillary Clinton from becoming president is his most important priority in this election.</p><p>He writes, "Hillary Clinton is manifestly unfit to be president, and her policies would harm millions of Americans. And Donald Trump is the only thing standing in her way."</p><p>Cruz's former campaign manager recently <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/trackers/2016-09-21/roe-on-where-cruz-is-on-trump-he-thinks-about-it-every-day" target="_blank">told Bloomberg</a> Trump's improved campaign structure was helping win the Texas senator over.</p><hr><b>Trending stories at <a href="http://www.newsy.com">Newsy.com</a></b><ul class="inline-related-links"><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/obama-responds-to-trump-s-black-communities-comment/">Obama Counters Trump's Black Communities Comment With This</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/who-is-bernie-sanders-brother/">Sanders' Brother — The Original Bernie Bro</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/former-trump-official-blaming-obama-for-racism-has-resigned/">Former Trump Official Blaming Obama For Racism Has Resigned</a></li></ul>
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In a Facebook post from his verified page on Friday, Ted Cruz officially endorsed Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, ending months of steadfastly withholding his support from the New York businessman.

"After many months of careful consideration, of prayer and searching my own conscience, I have decided that on Election Day, I will vote for the Republican nominee, Donald Trump," Cruz's post said. " ... A year ago, I pledged to endorse the Republican nominee, and I am honoring that commitment. And if you don’t want to see a Hillary Clinton presidency, I encourage you to vote for him."

An endorsement of Trump stands in stark contrast to Cruz’s political behavior since Trump clinched the Republican nomination in May. At the Republican National Convention in Cleveland in July, Cruz was booed off the stage by Trump supporters after advising Republicans to “vote their conscience” and failing endorse the party's nominee.

After initially aligning themselves in pre-primary debates, their relationship devolved after Trump threatened to “spill the beans” on his wife, Heidi, after he claimed Cruz’s campaign shared a racy photo of Melania Trump in an ad targeted to Mormon voters. In addition to sharing an unflattering picture of Heidi Cruz, Trump also implied that Cruz’s father was involved in the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy.

Read Cruz's full endorsement below.

Alex Hider is a writer for the E.W. Scripps National Desk. Follow him on Twitter @alexhider.