Phaedra Trethan

@CP_Phaedra

HADDON HEIGHTS - Heidi Cruz, whose husband, Ted, is locked in a bitter fight for the GOP presidential nomination, will appear at a rally and fundraiser next week in Haddon Heights.

Cruz will appear from noon to 1:15 p.m. Wednesday at The Cabin, 600 West Lippincott Lane, according to a release from Ted Cruz for NJ.

The event will include a fundraiser and meet-and-greet for campaign donors and invited guests; afterward, there will be a public rally for the Cruz campaign, which has targeted New Jersey as a crucial state in the fight for the Republican nomination. New Jersey's primary is June 7.

Heidi Cruz has been the subject of a bitter feud this week between her husband and Donald Trump, who sent tweets attacking her after the super PAC Make America Awesome posted photos of Trump's model wife, Melania, posing nude, which some say was meant to dissuade Mormon voters in Utah from voting for Trump in that state's primary Tuesday.

Cruz defeated Trump in that primary; he has denied any ties to the PAC or the ad.

Cruz has raised about $800,000 in New Jersey, said Scot DeCristofaro, who is with the Texas senator's New Jersey campaign.

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"We've been saying all along that New Jersey would matter" in the primary race, he said, a rare occurrence as New Jersey joins California, New Mexico, Montana and South Dakota as the last states with primaries. New Jersey's 51 delegates will be up for grabs in the winner-take-all primary.

Heidi Cruz will make additional stops in New Jersey next week and will have breakfast in North Jersey before heading south.

Her appearance in Haddon Heights comes because "the donor base and the voter base have created a demand that she come to South Jersey," DeCristofaro said.

Phaedra Trethan: (856) 486-2417; ptrethan@gannettnj.com

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