Charlie Crist, a Republican from St. Petersburg, was elected Florida's 44th
governor in 2006. Rather than run for re-election in 2010, he decided to go
for an open U.S. Senate seat, lauching his Charlie Crist for Senate
campaign in May 2009. His chief rival is former House Speaker Marco Rubio,
a Cuban-American from Miami, who launched Marco Rubio for Senate in 2009
also. As Florida governor, Charlie Crist has governed from the center,
taking office on a populist wave. Marco Rubio, a staunch conservative, has
been buoyed to frontrunner status in the U.S. Senate race in part by the
enthusiasm of tea party supporters.
News
