Cruz backs Cassidy in Louisiana runoff

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is giving a boost to Rep. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) as he works to shore up conservative support in his runoff battle with Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.).

{mosads}Landrieu and Cassidy emerged from a three-way race on Tuesday night, ahead of Tea Party-backed Rob Maness.

On Wednesday, Cruz penned a fundraising email for Cassidy, urging his “fellow conservatives” to “unite” around the congressman.

“Rob Maness ran a strong campaign and he’s a good man. But now that the primary is behind us, I encourage you to unite around Bill Cassidy so we can defeat Mary Landrieu,” Cruz wrote in the email.

“It is essential that conservatives across the country like you stand with Bill to make sure President Obama does not have another far-left vote in the Senate.”

Maness drew the backing of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) and the outside spending group Senate Conservatives Fund, among others. Some conservatives within the state continue to express skepticism over Cassidy’s competitiveness with Landrieu in the runoff. Every public poll, however, has shown him leading her in a one-on-one matchup.

But Cassidy is still making moves to shore up support from conservatives. On Thursday, he held an event with a handful of anti-abortion-rights activists in the state, including leaders from the Susan B. Anthony List and National Right to Life.

Still, Maness has yet to publicly endorse the Republican in the runoff. A spokesman told the Times-Picayune that he plans to back Cassidy, but no word has yet come from the candidate himself.