|
 But rallying them is proving a challenge for the 58-year-old
former Republican, who is facing a tight race against incumbent
Governor Rick Scott and needs a heavy turnout by minority and
liberal voters to deliver a major political prize to the Democrats.
"Charlie Crist has some real work to do to regain trust in the black
community," said Daniel Smith, a political science professor at the
University of Florida in Gainesville. "He’s got a mixed track
record."
A lawyer and campaign veteran who became a Democrat nearly two years
ago, Crist served as the Republican governor from 2007 to 2011 after
beginning his political career as a state senator, where he was
dubbed "Chain Gang Charlie" for proposing prisoner roadside work
crews.
"I believe in justice, and I think most Floridians do," Crist told
Reuters when asked about the inflammatory nickname. He added, "I
also believe in forgiveness."
The moniker has resurfaced lately in racially charged radio ads and
flyers, while some early polls show his support among black voters,
who make up more than a quarter of Florida's Democrats, falling
short of what is likely needed to wrestle the state from Republican
hands after almost 16 years.
Since switching parties, Crist has changed several political
positions: he now supports gay marriage and gun control. He has made
high-profile public appearances with party heavyweights such as
President Barack Obama and former President Bill Clinton.
Still, he has struggled to convince some voters, who view him as a
political opportunist, that he has their interests at heart. Many
black voters, in particular, were turned off in 2010 when Crist
jumped into a U.S. Senate race as an independent, after a challenge
from the right in a Republican primary, drawing support away from
the black Democratic candidate.
"Charlie Crist is a smooth operator, a used car salesman, but he
doesn’t mean the African American community any good," said Leslie
Wimes, a black Democratic blogger who founded a women's business
group in south Florida.
A recent poll conducted by Quinnipiac University put his support
among black voters at 72 percent against Scott, well below the more
than 90 percent analysts believe he needs to win.
At about the same time, a poll by SurveyUSA for a Tampa-area TV
station showed he may be gaining ground. It put his support among
black voters at 92 percent, an abrupt jump of 20 to 30 points from
earlier surveys by the group, although pollsters warned it was too
early in the race to draw conclusions.
Crist said he will get the votes. His campaign, which appears to be
making inroads by reaching out to black church leaders and
canvassing neighborhoods, points to several policies he pushed
through as a Republican that won praise from black leaders.
In 2008, for instance, when voters were standing in long lines at
the polls, Crist extended early voting hours. He also helped restore
voting rights for many felons.
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Earlier this month, Crist was warmly greeted at a predominantly
black church in Tampa during a candidate forum. In the audience
was Iris Metcalf, a 51-year-old secretary who voted for Crist for
governor when he ran as a Republican. "Parties evolve and people
evolve," said Metcalf, who still supports Crist.
Crist's biggest hurdle in securing the key black turnout may be a
series of provocative ads by Progressive Choice, a group based in
Maryland that says it formed some months ago to advocate for liberal
issues such as reproductive choice, equal rights and education.
While the group has criticized Crist's positions as a Republican on
a range of issues, its most vociferous attacks have centered on
race.
One of the ads, set against a pulsing hip hop beat, urges black
voters to break the chains, a reference to his past support of chain
gangs. Another ad blames him for a "lost generation of African
Americans."
As a federally registered, social welfare organization, Progressive
Choice does not disclose donors. Crist strategists call it a shadow
operation for conservatives, which the group denies.
"The challenge in front of him is owning up," said Dwight Bullard, a
Democratic state senator from a prominent black political family who
is supporting Crist's underdog opponent in an August primary. "To
let those ads linger out there unanswered, I think, is really
harming the turnout."
The challenge for Crist is to lure black voters to the polls by
addressing issues they care about, such as school discipline and the
justice system, political analysts said.
"Democrats are not going to be voting for Rick Scott. The question
is whether or not they will turn out to vote," Smith said.
(Additional reporting by David Adams and Zachary Fagenson in Miami,
Susan Cooper Eastman in Jacksonville; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
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