DCCC Political Call Sheet
To: Rep. Heck
From: Ian Russell (cell: 402-429-7941; email: )
Date: July 20, 2015
District: Former Governor Charlie Crist (FL-13, Jolly – St. Petersburg)
Purpose of the Meeting:
Thank you for calling Governor Charlie Crist to congratulate him on his announcement today on Twitter that he would run for Congress if his home is within the redrawn FL-13 (there is virtually no way it won’t be).
Cell: (727) 804-8035
Talking Points:
· On July 20th Crist tweeted, “If the new congressional map includes my home, I intend on running to serve the people again.” Please tell Crist you are excited about this announcement.
· On July 20th Rep. David Jolly announced he will run for Marco Rubio’s Senate seat. By adding all of St. Petersburg into a new FL-13, the new congressional map will make this district virtually unwinnable for a Republican (DPI likely between 55% and 57%), and this fact was clearly not lost on Jolly. If Crist wins in 2016 he will hold the seat for as long as he likes.
Background:
· The Florida Supreme Court ruled on July 9th that the Florida legislature has 100 days to pass a map that satisfies Florida’s constitutional requirements. They specifically addressed FL-13 (Jolly) and FL-14 (Castor) and ruled that a new map must not cross the bay, in essence ruling that all of Pinellas must be included in a new FL-13. This will put all of St. Petersburg into the district, increasing Democratic performance to between 55% and 57%.
FL-13 in 2014
Rep. Bill Young announced he would not be seeking reelection from a hospital bed on October 9, 2013. Young passed away just over a week later on October 18th, triggering a special election to fill his vacant seat on March 11, 2014.
DCCC recruited former Florida Chief Financial Officer, Alex Sink to run in the special election. Republicans settled on former Young staffer and lobbyist, David Jolly. Both national parties invested heavily in the election and the NRCC was joined by several conservative Super PACs in attacking Sink. Jolly prevailed by just 3,456 votes in a low turnout election.
Democrats recruited Marine Colonel Eduardo Jany (JAN – nee) to run against Jolly in the November 2014 general election. Jany had to withdraw from the race due to personal reasons after filing had closed for the election, leaving Jolly unopposed in November.
Charlie Crist Bio:
Personal
Charles Joseph"Charlie"Crist, Jr.(born July 24, 1956) served as the44th Governor of Floridafrom 2007 to 2011.
Crist was born inAltoona, Pennsylvaniaon July 24, 1956 and moved to St. Petersburg, Florida as a child.
He attendedWake Forest Universityfor two years, where he played quarterback for theWake Forest Demon Deacons footballteam. Crist earned his undergraduate degree from Florida State Universitywhere he was elected Vice President of the student body. He received hisJ.D.fromSamford UniversityCumberland School of Law.
Crist became engaged toCarole Romeon July 3, 2008 after 9 months of dating, and was marriedon December 12 of that year at theFirst Methodist Church of St. Petersburg, where Crist is a member.
Political Career
Crist began his political career as aRepublican, serving in theFlorida Senatefrom 1993 to 1999, running unsuccessfully for theU.S. Senatein1998and then serving asFlorida Education Commissionerfrom 2001 to 2003 andFlorida Attorney Generalfrom 2003 to 2007, before being elected Governor in2006.
Crist declined to run for re-election as Governor in2010, instead announcing on May 12, 2009 that he was running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by then-fellow RepublicanMel Martinez. After initially leading in the race for the Republican nomination, he was overtaken in the polls byMarco Rubio, and in April 2010, Crist left the Republican Party and became anIndependent.In the general election, he lost to Rubio in a three-way race, taking 30% of the vote to Rubio's 49% and Democratic nomineeKendrick Meek's 20%. Crist's term as Governor ended in January 2011.
On December 7, 2012, he joined theDemocratic Party, having endorsed PresidentBarack Obamafor re-election in 2012.On November 1, 2013, he announced that he was running for governor in the2014 election.However, he was defeated by incumbent GovernorRick Scottin a close contest.
Crist was elected to theFlorida Senatein 1992, representing parts of St. Petersburg,defeating longtime incumbent Democratic State SenatorHelen Gordon DavisofTampa.Crist was able to unseat Gordon Davis following Florida'sredistricting, which created an entirely new state senate district.
Crist gained recognition in 1998 as the Republican challenger to the incumbent Democratic U.S. SenatorBob Graham. He lost to Graham by 26 percent.He was electedEducation Commissioner of Floridain 2000 – a position he held until it became an appointed office 2003, due to a 1998 constitutional amendment.
In 2002 Crist was elected as the Attorney General in Florida. 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 combattingspam e-mailand froze utility rates. He focused on ending telecom deception and protecting the environment.
As Attorney General, he disagreed with Governor Jeb Bush in theTerri Schiavo case. Crist received criticism from both sides on this issue.
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.
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 theUS Senate, and his main Republican opponent was former Florida House SpeakerMarco Rubio,in addition to Democratic nomineeKendrick 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 lost the Republican primary to Marco Rubio, 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.
On January 7, 2011, it was announced that Crist would join personal-injury law firmMorgan and MorganinTampa.It was confirmed that he would be a part-time instructor atStetson University College of Law.
On August 26, 2012, he endorsedBarack Obamafor re-election as president overMitt Romney.Crist was a speaker at the2012 Democratic National Convention.
On December 7, 2012, Crist announced viaTwitterthat he had joined the Democratic Party.
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 titledThe 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.
Crist lost to RepublicanRick Scottin the 2014 midterm elections by just over 1%. (48.2% - 47.1%).
FL-13 DISTRICT INFO
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