Is Ted Cruz the Zodiac Killer? Florida Voters Think So

By SHERRI LONON (Patch Staff)

Our long nightmare has finally come to an end. A surprising number of voters in Florida think they’ve solved the mystery of California’s most infamous serial killer: Forty percent of Florida voters polled said presidential candidate Ted Cruz could be the Zodiac Killer.

That’s according to Public Policy Polling, which released its latest poll results related to Florida’s upcoming Presidential Preference Primary on Thursday. While most of the poll focused on more serious questions about the election, pollsters decided to drop in the Zodiac question at the tail end. The survey included 1,012 registered Sunshine State voters, including 464 likely Republican primary voters and 388 likely Democratic primary voters. It was conducted between Feb. 24 and Feb. 25.

Nevermind, that Cruz would have been an infant at the tail end of the murderous crime spree.

Pollsters found that 38 percent of Florida’s voters “think it’s possible that Ted Cruz is the Zodiac Killer,” a media release on the poll results says. Another 10 percent told pollsters Cruz “for sure is,” while another 28 percent said they are not sure.

Those responses came despite the fact the Zodiac Killer was active in the late 1960s to early 1970s. Cruz, a Republican, was born on Dec. 22, 1970.

It seems 62 percent of Floridians polled “exonerated (Cruz) from being a toddler serial killer,” the release notes.

The self-named Zodiac Killer has been linked to five murders and may be responsible for more, according to the FBI. The killer is said to have sent a three-part coded message to a newspaper explaining his motives. The identity of the killer remains unknown today.

Social media channels have been lit up with speculation about a possible Cruz-Zodiac connection ever since a tweet went out back in 2013 making the joke because of Cruz’s perceived likeness to the still at-large serial killer.

While it’s true most Floridians don’t think Cruz is the Zodiac, it seems Sunshine State voters just don’t like him very much. He only has a favorability rating of 39 percent in Florida with 48 percent rating him unfavorably. Sixty-four percent of Florida Republicans polled gave Donald Trump a favorable opinion with only 27 percent offering a negative one, the poll noted.

And, for those who still favor a Cruz/Zodiac link, there’s even a T-shirt for that. It seems an activist in west Texas has created a fundraising campaign selling shirts that say “Ted Cruz Was The Zodiac Killer.” All proceeds raised from the venture reportedly go to the West Fund, which provides funding and support for abortion services in southwest Texas. The T-shirts set buyers back $15.