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It's no secret that Sen. Ted Cruz is not well liked by the Republican establishment.

Less than two months ago, South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham famously described choosing between GOP frontrunners Donald Trump and Senator Cruz "like being shot or poisoned."

鈥淚f you killed Ted Cruz on the floor of the Senate, and the trial was in the Senate, nobody would convict you," Senator Graham joked.

Cruz famously earned the nickname 鈥渨acko bird鈥� from Arizona Sen. John McCain when he filibustered the nomination of John Brennan as CIA director. Others have described the Texas Senator as 鈥渁brasive,鈥� 鈥渁rrogant,鈥� and 鈥渃reepy.鈥�

But then a funny thing happened: The GOP began warming to him.

鈥淭ed has made the best case thus far that he can be the alternative to Trump," said one US senator on Sunday's "Meet the Press."聽鈥淎t the end of the day, I know what I鈥檓 getting with Ted Cruz. If Ted is the alternative to Trump, at least he鈥檚 a conservative Republican.鈥�

The senator who made that comment? Graham, formerly an avowed Cruz-hater.

"We are now hearing some voices, like Lindsay Graham, who indicate they'll hold their noses and support Cruz if it means avoiding a Trump general election disaster," says David Ryden, a professor of political science at Hope College in Michigan. "More significantly, the establishment voices, like Bob Dole, for example, who previously said they'd opt for Trump over Cruz have completely disappeared."

It's a sign of how desperate the situation has become, according some in the GOP.

The long line of establishment candidates the GOP had pinned their anti-Trump hopes on 鈥� Gov. Scott Walker, former Gov. Jeb Bush, Sen. Marco Rubio 鈥� sputtered out or lost momentum. Now, after another "Super" primary day where Senator Rubio underperformed expectations, it appears many party elites are holding their noses and turning to their final hope against Trump: Cruz.

"He's seen as the last, least bad choice for derailing Trump," says Professor Ryden.

Unlike favorite-son Rubio who all but disintegrated in recent weeks, Cruz has repeatedly exceeded expectations. He now appears to be the last man standing who can beat Trump.

Cruz is trailing Trump by just three points in a new national poll, he has notched seven primary and caucus wins, and he's collected 359 delegates 鈥撀爁ar more than Rubio or the often-overlooked Ohio Gov. John Kasich.

It's enough for some GOP operatives to put their ideological differences aside and begin lining up behind Cruz.

鈥淗e seems to be the only guy who鈥檚 got some momentum, and is probably the best situated if there is anybody out there to beat Trump,鈥� Austin Barbour, a prominent Mississippi-based GOP operative told Politico. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why there are many people like me聽鈥撀燭ed Cruz wouldn鈥檛 have been our first choice, but as we go through the process, we鈥檙e reevaluating our vote, and he seems to be the guy at the top of the list.鈥�

One reason Republicans are coming around to Cruz: They trust him more on filling the Supreme Court vacancy left by Justice Antonin Scalia's death, says Ryden.

"The most compelling reason for the acceptance of Cruz comes down to the Supreme Court and the open Scalia seat," he says. "Establishment conservatives who otherwise despise Cruz know with certainty that he would do right with the Court. He has credibility as a genuine constitutional conservative, and could be trusted to follow through on pledges to nominate real conservative jurists. No one trusts Trump to do likewise."

If the GOP coalesces around Cruz instead of Trump, the centrist wing of the party will be forced to stretch far to the right. The Texas senator supports repealing Obamacare, abolishing the IRS, cutting federal funding for Planned Parenthood, and deporting undocumented immigrants en masse. He opposes same-sex marriage, civil unions, and abortion, except in rare cases.

For Cruz, who has prided himself on being disliked by his Senate colleagues 鈥撀爋r, as he calls them, "the Washington cartel" 鈥撀爄t might be time to court that cartel. Collecting endorsements and donations may require rapprochement, an art at which the famously abrasive senator isn't known to excel.聽

So far, Cruz, who once called Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell a "liar" on the Senate floor, has not won the endorsement of a single senator.

But maybe his bristly persona serves him, Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch told the Washington Post.

鈥淗e鈥檚 come a long way the way he is, and I don鈥檛 think changing his personality is a requisite. I think he鈥檚 got a tough, strong personality," he said. "A lot of people think that would be good for the presidency."