Early life and education

Crist was born in Altoona, Pennsylvania on July 24, 1956, to Charles Joseph Crist, Sr., an American physician of Greek Cypriot and Lebanese descent, and Nancy (née Lee), of Scots-Irish, Swiss, and Welsh descent. His family name is adapted from the original Greek name "Christodoulou".

Crist moved to St. Petersburg, Florida, as a child, where he attended Riviera Middle School, and Shorecrest Preparatory School and graduated from St. Petersburg High School in 1974. He is the second of four children and has three sisters: Margaret Crist Wood, Elizabeth Crist Hyden, and Catherine Crist Kennedy. He attended Wake Forest University for two years, where he played quarterback for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team. Crist earned his undergraduate degree from Florida State University where he was elected Vice President of the student body and became a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity. He received his J.D. from Samford University Cumberland School of Law.

Early career

Practicing law

After graduating from the Cumberland School of Law in 1981, and having passed the bar on his third attempt, Crist was hired as general counsel to Minor League Baseball, which was headquartered in St. Petersburg. Drawn to politics, Crist was a candidate for public office for the first time in 1986, as a Republican, in the primary race for a state Senate seat in Pinellas County. After losing in a runoff, Crist joined his brother-in-law in private practice in St. Petersburg, but soon returned to politics as an aide in the successful 1988 United States Senate campaign of Connie Mack III, whom he has since described as his political mentor.

Florida Senate

Crist was elected to the Florida Senate in 1992, representing parts of St. Petersburg, defeating longtime incumbent Democratic State Senator Helen Gordon Davis of Tampa. Crist was able to unseat Gordon Davis following Florida's redistricting, which created an entirely new state senate district. His victory was credited with ending the 128-year control of the Florida Senate by the Democratic Party, resulting in an even 20-20 tie in Senate between the Democrats and Republicans following the 1992 election.

He was known as a law-and-order senator, sponsoring legislation requiring inmates to serve at least 85% of their sentences before becoming eligible for parole. He supported teacher salary increases, charter schools, and a specialty license plate for Everglades conservation. With Crist as chairman, the Senate Ethics and Elections Committee investigated actions of then-governor Lawton Chiles amid allegations that Chiles' campaign had made "scare calls" to senior citizens days before the 1994 gubernatorial election. Chiles testified before the committee and admitted that his campaign had made the calls.

Florida Education Commissioner

Crist gained recognition in 1998 as the Republican challenger to the incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Bob Graham. He lost to Graham by 26 percent. He was elected Education Commissioner of Florida in 2000 - a position he held until it became an appointed office 2003, due to a 1998 constitutional amendment.

Crist left his position after he was elected Attorney General.

Political career

Florida Attorney General

In 2002 Crist was elected as the Attorney General in Florida. He received support of his candidacy from the host of America's Most Wanted, John Walsh. Walsh and other supporters of his work commented and cited his work with the Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Crist was praised by civil rights and consumer groups for expanding the powers of the Attorney General, during his time in office. These powers enabled him and Attorneys General in the future to have greater powers when prosecuting in civil rights and fraud cases. He also worked at combatting spam e-mail and froze utility rates. He focused on ending telecom deception and protecting the environment.

In 2004, Crist’s office began to investigate the Lou Pearlman case. Jacqueline Dowd, who was leading the investigation, resigned and John MacGregor, who ended the investigation in 2004, replaced her. In 2006, Les Henderson criticized Crist’s handling of the Lou Pearlman scouting network and the investigation.

As Attorney General, he disagreed with governor Jeb Bush in the Terri Schiavo case. Crist received criticism from both sides on this issue.

Governor of Florida

Crist was inaugurated Governor of Florida on January 2, 2007. He was involved in changing policies including work on the purchase of a large area of sugar plantations. He also worked on education, with Florida rising into the top 10 for K12 education under his control.

Fiscal policies

Crist supported President Barack Obama's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, a stimulus package in response to the Great Recession. Fellow Republicans were angered by Crist's support for the stimulus.

Crist called the act a "godsend," noting that it saved the jobs of nearly 20,000 Florida schoolteachers and other school workers in the 2009-10 period.

Social policies

Capital punishment

As governor, Crist supported capital punishment

Gun rights

In 2008 he signed a provision that prevents employers from prohibiting employees' bringing firearms to the workplace, as long as the weapons are secure and individuals maintain a concealed carry license.

Abortion

Crist's stance on abortion has been unclear at times. In 1995, while in Florida Senate, Crist joined with two Democrats in the Senate Health Care Committee in voting against a proposal for a mandatory 24-hour waiting period before a woman could have an abortion, resulting in a 3-3 tie vote and the defeat of the bill. In 1998, while running for the U.S. Senate, Crist wrote in a Tampa Bay Times questionnaire that "I believe that a woman has the right to choose, but would prefer only after careful consideration and consultation with her family, her physician and her clergy; not her government." Crist said in a debate that year that he did not support a constitutional amendment banning abortion. In 2006, while running for governor, Cris said that he did not support overturning Roe v. Wade and opposed a mandatory 24-hour waiting period before a woman could have an abortion.

In 2010, while running for the U.S. Senate again, Crist said he would "fight for pro-life legislative efforts" and described himself as "pro-life." By March 2010, however, as rumors swirled that he would leave the Republican Party and become an independent, Crist reiterated that he did not support overturning Roe v. Wade and told a Christian Family Coalition group that "We ought to instead of change laws, change hearts."

In June 2010, after leaving the Republican Party and becoming an independent, Crist removed anti-abortion language from his website. Shortly thereafter, Crist vetoed a bill to require women seeking abortions to pay for an receive an ultrasound, calling the measure "punitive" and "almost mean-spirited." The bill also included language barring abortion coverage "under a contract toward which any tax credit or cost-sharing credit is applied." Legislative Republicans and anti-abortion groups said that his language was aimed at preventing "what they considered the possibility of federal funding being used for abortion in Florida," while abortion rights groups said that the broadly written provision would have resulted "in hundreds of thousands of women losing health care coverage that they currently have." The bill vetoed by Crist also included some provisions "intended to thwart" the Affordable Care Act, the federal health care reform legislation championed by President Obama.

Same-sex marriage and GLBT issues

In 2006, as a proposed state constitutional amendment banning same-sex unions was headed to the ballot in Florida, Crist said that such an amendment was unnecessary because state law already barred same-sex marriages. During the Republican primary, however, Crist went on to sign the petition for the amendment in September 2005 at the request of the Christian Coalition. Crist said in campaign materials at the time that he supported "traditional marriage." In 2008, Crist said that he voted for the Florida amendment, which passed.

In a debate and a radio talk show appearance in 2006, Crist indicated support for civil unions. In 2010, after switching to become an independent during the U.S. Senate race, Crist declared his support for civil unions encompassing "the full range of legal protections" including "access to a loved one in the hospital, inheritance rights, the fundamental things people need to take care of their families." It is unclear whether such civil unions would have been prohibited by the 2008 state constitutional amendment which Crist supported.

As governor, Crist deemphasized the marriage issue, saying in a CNN appearance in late 2007 that "It's not an issue that moves me. I'm just a live and let live kind of guy" and telling the Orlando Sentinel in 2008 that the issue was not "top tier" for him.

Crist initially supported Florida's ban on same-sex adoption, which had been in place since 1977. Crist publicly expressed support for the ban from the time he was attorney general in 2006 to his early campaign for the U.S. Senate in 2010, even after some state legislators proposed dropping the ban in 2007 and a Miami-Dade judge struck down the ban as unconstitutional in 2008. Crist expressed support for the ban as late as February 2010.

By June 2010, however, Crist expressed openness to changing Florida law to allow same-sex adoption, saying a better approach "would be to let judges make that decision on a case-by-case basis."

In September 2010, Crist said that he has had an "appropriate evolution" on gay rights and was considering dropping the state's appeal of the court ruling striking down Florida's ban on gay adoption. Days later, after an appeals court struck down the ban, Crist hailed the ruling "a very good day for Florida" and "a great day for children" and announced that the state would no longer seek to enforce the ban. In a Senate candidates' debate the next month, Crist attributed his shift in positions to "the convergence of life experience and wisdom," saying that he had become more tolerant and become less judgmental with age.

In January 2014, Crist apologized for his support for the 2008 same-sex marriage ban and for the same-sex adoption ban, telling an Orlando LGBT publication that "I'm sorry I did that. It was a mistake. I was wrong. Please forgive me."

Environmental work

As an environmental advocate, Crist, in June 2008, proposed the State of Florida buy 187,000 acres (760 km2) from the United States Sugar Corporation for $1.2 billion. The purchase would remove about 187,000 acres of sugar farming for restoration efforts. In front of supporters in Palm Beach County, Crist described the deal "as monumental as our nation's first national park." Economic changes forced the purchase to be reduced to 73,000 acres (300 km2) of sugar and citrus plantations for Everglades restoration projects.

He announced plans to sign executive orders to impose strict air pollution standards in the state, with aims to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent of the 1990 levels, by 2050 . In his gubernatorial campaign, Crist opposed offshore oil drilling. Crist altered that position in June 2008, when oil reached peak prices, saying "I mean, let's face it, the price of gas has gone through the roof, and Florida families are suffering, and my heart bleeds for them."

Other work

Crist endorsed legislation requiring paper records of all ballots cast in an election, after claims that votes were undercounted in black communities by computerized voting machines. He supported a large tax cut which was to total $25 billion over a 5-year period. The tax cut was aimed at property tax relief.

He supported increased regulation of the insurance industry, including property insurance rates (in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina) and health insurance. The Citizen's Property Insurance Corp and the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund have been described as risky and underfunded. Standing next to former football star Dan Marino (whose son, Michael, is autistic and who inspired the Dan Marino Foundation), Crist signed a law expanding health coverage statewide for autism disorders and he has also signed legislation expanding low-income coverage and creating public and private insurance options in the state.

Role in the 2008 presidential election

Senator John McCain endorsed Crist's 2006 campaign for Governor, traveling the state to campaign with him. The day before the general election, Crist held a campaign event with McCain in Jacksonville. Later, when the Republican Presidential primary debates were held in St. Petersburg, Crist embraced McCain. Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who had also campaigned for Crist during the gubernatorial election, had sought his endorsement.

In May 2007, Crist signed a bill moving the date of Florida's presidential primary to January 29, 2008, contrary to national political party rules. Crist joined Michigan governor Jennifer Granholm in asking that their states' delegates be seated. Both national conventions ended up seating all delegates, but with only a half vote each for the sanctioned states.

On January 26, 2008, He endorsed McCain in the Republican primary race, saying, "He's a great friend and will do a great job for the United States." McCain later won the primary by five percentage points.

On October 28, 2008 Crist extended early voting hours of operation and declared that a "state of emergency exists" due to record voter turnout and resultant hours-long waits at locations throughout the state.

On October 29 and October 31, 2008, Crist appeared on MSNBC's Morning Joe in which he told former Florida congressman Joe Scarborough that the race was tightening in Florida.

2010 Senate campaign

Main article: United States Senate election in Florida, 2010

Wikinews has related news: Musician David Byrne sues Florida governor over campaign song

Crist announced May 12, 2009 that he would not run for re-election as Governor in 2010, making him the first Florida governor not to run for reelection since 1964. Instead, he ran for the US Senate, and his main Republican opponent was former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio, in addition to Democratic nominee Kendrick Meek.

Crist was initially the front runner in the Republican primary, but later trailed Rubio in polls.

Crist announced his intent to run as an unaffiliated candidate in the 2010 senate election, while at the same time, according to a press release from his campaign, he remained a registered Republican. Crist officially changed his registration status to "non party affiliated" on May 13, 2010. Crist did not return campaign contributions made to him while a Republican. Crist withdrew from the Republican primary after trailing Marco Rubio in pre-primary polling, and then lost the general election, receiving 29.7% of the vote, compared to 48.9% for Rubio and 20.2% for the Democratic Party candidate Meek.

In April 2011, as part of a settlement of a copyright lawsuit brought by musician David Byrne, Crist apologized for his Senate campaign's use of Byrne's song Road to Nowhere without permission.

By the spring of 2015 there was media speculation Crist would seek the Democratic nomination for Florida's 2016 senate race. This would mark his third run for the senate seat (he lost in 1998 and 2010). However, in March of 2015 Crist stated he would not seek the nomination. That same month he endorsed U.S. Congressman Patrick Murphy's candidacy for the senate race.

Post-gubernatorial career

In January 2011, Crist joined personal injury law firm Morgan & Morgan in Tampa. Crist serves as a "rainmaker" for the firm and does not regularly appear in court.

In 2013, Crist performed paid consulting work for Coastal Construction, a Miami-based construction firm owned by Crist's longtime friend Tom Murphy, who is the father of U.S. Representative Patrick Murphy.

Crist has been a part-time guest lecturer at Stetson University College of Law, with the title of Distinguished Professorial Lecturer.

In August 2012, Crist endorsed President Barack Obama in his campaign for re-election over Republican nominee Mitt Romney, saying that the Republican Party "pitched so far to the extreme right on issues important to women, immigrants, seniors and students that they've proven incapable of governing for the people." Crist was a speaker at the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, saying "I didn't leave the Republican Party; it left me."

On December 7, 2012, Crist announced via Twitter that he had joined the Democratic Party.

2014 gubernatorial election

Main article: Florida gubernatorial election, 2014

In July 2013, it was announced that Crist would be releasing a new book and it was in the process of being written. The release hinted he would be running in the 2014 gubernatorial election. The book, released in February 2014, is titled The Party's Over: How the Extreme Right Hijacked the GOP and I Became a Democrat. The book details why Crist became a Democrat and left the Republican Party. On November 1, 2013, Crist filed to run for governor as a Democrat.

Having won the Democratic nomination, Crist was defeated in the 2014 gubernatorial election by Republican incumbent Rick Scott.

Crist holds the rare distinction of losing a statewide general election in Florida as a Republican, Democrat and Independent candidate.

2016 Congressional campaign

On October 20, 2015, Crist announced that he would seek the Democratic nomination for Florida's 13th congressional district in the 2016 U.S. House of Representatives elections. He had previously announced on Twitter that he would not run for political office in 2016.

Political positions

Future of the Republican Party

On November 12-14, 2008, Crist hosted the Republican Governors Association (RGA) annual meeting in Miami. Held the week after the Democratic Party victories in the 2008 election, there was speculation about the tone of the Republican Governors meeting. Then Alaska governor Sarah Palin, the defeated 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, was a featured participant and speaker.

Crist's speech at the RGA conference, "Listen to the Voters and Serve" included his sentiments on how the GOP should evolve:

This party can no longer hope to reach Hispanics, African Americans and other minority groups - we need to just do it. Embracing cultures and lifestyles will make us a better party and better leaders. This desire for inclusiveness is near and dear to my heart... Last week, the American people made a choice and this week, if we choose to call ourselves leaders, if we truly endeavor to serve with a servant's heart for the people who count on us, then we too must work together, listen to one another and learn from the leaders who made the kind of history the American people deserve.

Crist held a joint interview with Governor Mark Sanford of South Carolina and they discussed the split in the Republican Party over where to direct the party's next efforts to gain more voters.

Same-sex marriage

On May 9, 2013, Crist announced that he supports same-sex marriage; “I most certainly support marriage equality in Florida and look forward to the day it happens here.” In both 2006 and 2008, Crist announced his support for the Federal Marriage Amendment although by 2010, he had endorsed adoption rights for gay couples.

United States embargo against Cuba

Crist wants to lift the United States embargo against Cuba, saying it has not helped to change the government of Cuba. He had supported the embargo earlier as Republican and independent.

Personal life

In July 1979, Crist married Amanda Morrow. They divorced within a year.

Crist became engaged to Carole Rome on July 3, 2008 after 9 months of dating, and was married on December 12 of that year at the First Methodist Church of St. Petersburg, where Crist is a member.

Books

• The Party's Over: How the Extreme Right Hijacked the GOP and I Became a Democrat (2014) ISBN 978-0525954415

[ Source: Wikipedia ]