Charlie Crist Easily Wins Democratic Primary to Challenge Ron DeSantis in November

U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, D-Fla., won the Democratic primary to challenge Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday.

With 92 percent of the vote reported, Crist had 59.9 percent of the votes. State Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried placed a distant second with 35.2 percent as Crist won almost every county in the state.

Consultant Cadance Daniel pulled 2.5 percent of the vote while teacher Robert Willis trailed with 2.4 percent.

Most polls had shown Crist with a commanding lead though the University of North Florida (UNF) released a poll last week which showed Fried ahead.

Crist was elected to three statewide offices as a Republican, including being elected governor in 2006. After losing the U.S. Senate race, in which he ran with no party affiliation, Crist joined the Democrats in 2012 and was his new party’s gubernatorial nominee in 2014 when he was edged by then Gov. Rick Scott in the general election. Crist bounced back to win a U.S. House seat in 2016, beating then U.S. Rep. David Jolly, R-Fla.

Polls have shown DeSantis with a solid lead over both Crist and Fried.