Right-wing Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz has been accused of trying to buy his way onto the New York Times bestseller list.

The newspaper excluded Cruz's memoir, A Time for Truth, after claiming it uncovered a ploy to inflate sales through bulk buying at certain locations.

'Preponderance of evidence': The New York Times says sales of Ted Cruz's book were boosted by 'strategic bulk purchases'. Credit:Joe Mitchell

"In the case of this book, the overwhelming preponderance of evidence was that sales were limited to strategic bulk purchases," Times spokeswoman Eileen Murphy told Politico.

Cruz's memoir sold more copies in its first week – almost 12,000 – than all but two other Times bestsellers.