Florida Governor Charlie Crist Announces Run For US Senate

Florida Governor Charlie Crist announced early Tuesday morning that he would run for the open Senate seat vacated by retiring Senator Mel Martinez (R-FL). Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), Chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, was quick to issue an endorsement of Crist over his potential primary challenger, Marco Rubio, who has positioned himself as a more conservative option than Crist, who openly campaigned with President Obama for his national stimulus package. Rubio is currently Speaker of the House of Representatives in the Florida State legislature. Crist's likely Democratic opponent will be Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-FL). Gov. Crist's name has also been floated as an early contender for the presidency in 2012, although his announcement of a Senate run makes this less likely. Crist is the first governor of Florida since the 1968 Constitution change to not seek re-election, and if he wins the Senate race, will be resigning his post as Governor almost 2 years early.