Democrats Hope Charlie Crist Can Best Anti-LGBTQ+ Gov. Ron DeSantis
(CNN) — To take on the herculean task of challenging Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis this fall, Florida Democrats are going with someone familiar over "something new."For the second time in eight years, Democratic voters will elect Charlie Crist as their nominee for governor, CNN projects, choosing the seasoned veteran over Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, who was vying to become the state's first female governor.
Crist now has just 11 weeks to unite his party, energize the Democratic base and convince independent voters that the state needs a new direction.The stakes for Democrats are high, and not just in Florida, where DeSantis has already pushed through an aggressively conservative agenda and has vowed a second term will bring more restrictions on abortion and fewer on guns.
National Democrats are also looking for Crist to slow DeSantis, one of the Republican Party's most-recognizable figures, before an anticipated campaign for the White House in 2024."This guy wants to be President of the United States of America," Crist said in his victory speech. "However, when we defeat him on November 8, that show is over."The task will not be easy.
DeSantis has amassed $132 million for the fall general election, a record sum for a gubernatorial candidate who isn't self-funded, and he has animated the Republican base more than any GOP politician not named Donald Trump.
