Illinois Birther Suit Against Cruz Dismissed

Republican presidential contender Ted Cruz fended off a lawsuit seeking to keep him off the Illinois primary ballot.

A supporter of rival candidate Ben Carson argued Cruz should be stricken from the ballot because he isn’t a “natural born citizen” as mandated by the Constitution to become president since he was born in Canada. The senator from Texas is fighting similar challenges in his home state as well as in New York, Alabama and Utah.

In the Illinois case, Cruz said the plaintiff failed to fulfill requirements for serving him and the state’s election board with the complaint. Judge Maureen Ward Kirby in Chicago agreed and threw out the suit.

Cruz, born in Calgary in 1970, says he’s eligible to run because his mother was a U.S. citizen. His father is from Cuba. Many constitutional law experts have backed his view, though some disagree. The U.S. Supreme Court has never ruled on the issue.

Attorney Lawrence Joyce filed the suit after the Illinois State Board of Elections dismissed his challenge.

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