The AP asked eight scientists chosen by professional science societies to grade the anonymous statements of Republican and Democratic candidates about climate science.
While Cruz had the worst score among Republicans, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush appears to have the best understanding of climate science in the GOP with a score of 64.
The scientists also docked points from Sen. Bernie Sanders' (I-VT) score for once exaggerating that "the planet that we're going to be leaving our kids and our grandchildren may well not be habitable."
"I would not say that the planet will become uninhabitable. Regardless of what we do, some humans will survive," Andrew Dessler, a climate scientist at Texas A&M University, said of Sanders' comment, according to the AP.
Here are all the candidates' scores, courtesy of the Associated Press:
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: The best way to clear out a ton of space on your iPhone superfast