U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz recently issued a summons to potential supporters.

It’s not really a summons. It’s a fundraising letter — as in, Cruz is summoning support. But the problem is the Cruz campaign has made the envelope look much like a legal summons, which can be pretty serious. A summons occurs when a person is sued or ordered to appear in court. Most people are probably not thrilled about getting such a summons.

A reader brought this mailer to our attention because she viewed it as misleading and intimidating. We reached out to the Cruz campaign and explained the concern. The Cruz campaign later provided the following statement:

“Out of more than 50,000 mailers to the San Antonio area targeting likely supporters there was one complaint that came not to us but to the local media. Our mail efforts have been both effective and critical to identifying and engaging our supporters, and getting them involved in our campaign efforts to keep Texas strong.”

No doubt, the fundraising letter, itself, is effective. But we think the Cruz campaign could do without the legal summons language on the envelope. It’s just too official looking. The envelope has two clear windows. Above those windows it says, “Summons Enclosed — Open Immediately” in bold letters.

In the top left corner, it says in small black print:

“Official Kerr County Summons

Voter Enrollment Campaign Division

Ted Cruz for Senate 2018”

Many people might notice that “Ted Cruz for Senate 2018” and, rightfully, assume this is just campaign mail. But many others might not get past the “Official Kerr County Summons” bit.

Cruz appears to be in a competitive race with U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke, D-El Paso. It’s understandable he would want to summon conservative support. But certainly his campaign can do that without making it look like a legal threat, right?

This editorial has been updated to provide a response from the Cruz campaign.