Crist is still an Independent, or Non-Party-Affiliated (NPA), but many are expecting him to announce at the DNC that he's changed his affiliation to Democrat. And there is a lot of speculation that he will enter the Democratic nomination for governor in 2013. Incumbent Rick Scott is extremely vulnerable, though he will have tens and perhaps hundreds of millions to spend on his re-election bid.
Last week it was reported that Republican Party Chair Lenny Curry wrote to Democratic National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman-Schultz about Crist's previous conservative bona fides, with an accompanying video. The letter read in part:
"You and President Obama have invited our former governor to address your party's national convention. In a spirit of bipartisan cooperation, I thought it would be beneficial for you to get a preview of some of the messages you could hear from Charlie Crist," Curry wrote. "Please don't misunderstand me. If you want to give speaking slots to people who compare President Obama to Jimmy Carter, declare their support for Sarah Palin, and do all this while identifying themselves as "Ronald Reagan Republicans," I can understand why."
The chairman continued, "Because returning to the conservative principles of the Republican Party is the only way we can get our country back on the path to prosperity. Less than two years ago Charlie Crist agreed by saying all these things and more."
