The Republican Party looks forward with these rising stars

The youngest (age 41) and first Hispanic solicitor governor of Texas recently won the Texas Republican primary runoff for U.S. Senate, in a surprise upset. Cruz had been considered a long-shot over establishment rival, Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst. He is set to run against Democrat Paul Sadler for the seat, and is heavily favored to win. At the recent RedState Gathering of conservatives in Jacksonville, Fla., where many aligned with the tea party attended, Cruz was a standout speaker and dubbed ???rock star Republican.??? His role in public office required him to represent the state of Texas in front of the U.S. Supreme Court. As if being the founder of the Latino Harvard Law Review was not enough of a resume builder for the job, the solicitor general was once a clerk for Chief Justice William Rehnquist.

A three-time appointee for attorney general of the state of New Hampshire, Ayotte made headlines as the first woman to ever hold the office. In 2010, she made headlines again when she ran for U.S. Senate and won with 60 percent of the vote. Her pro-defense and pro-business stances come from her own experiences of being a military wife and the co-owner of a landscaping and snow removal company she shares with her husband. Ayotte???s career as attorney general required her to argue in front of the Supreme Court in Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, in which she defended the state???s legislation requiring parental notification prior to a minor???s abortion procedure. Ayotte???s young senatorial career???she???s 44???is likely to be just as notable as her time serving the state of New Hampshire.

The Ohio state treasurer, who is the current Republican candidate running against Sen. Sherrod Brown, has spent his young???he???s 34???life in public service. Upon graduating from Case Western Reserve Law School, Mandel enlisted in the Marines. Mandel served two deployments in the Al Anbar province of Iraq. Prior to this election, Mandel has served in public office on several local and state levels. Looking at his resume, it is clear that Mandel has a knack for financial matters. As treasurer, Mandel managed to produce a state surplus of $400,000 and helped Ohio achieve Standard & Poor???s highest possible rating.

This law student, age 25, is running to serve California???s 9th district as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives. While still a student at the University of California Berkeley???s law school, Gill raised $955,000 in 2011. By the end of the second fundraising quarter Gill had more than $1 million cash on hand. Earlier this month, RealClearPolitics declared that the race for the 9th district was a ???toss-up,??? meaning that Gill was giving the incumbent candidate Congressman Jerry McNerney some serious competition. As the son of two Indian immigrant doctors and farm owners in rural California, Gill was groomed for public service from a young age. If elected, Gill will be the third U.S. representative of Indian heritage, following in the footsteps of Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal.