PolitiFact | Charlie Crist

The Poynter Institute

Get PolitiFact in your inbox.

Charlie Crist lost the race for Florida governor as the Democratic candidate in 2022. He served as a U.S. congressman from St. Petersburg since 2017 and resigned Aug. 31, 2022 to focus on his campaign. As a Republican, Crist served as governor from 2007 to 2011. Crist left the Republican Party in 2010 to mount a campaign for the U.S. Senate as an independent. Crist lost the race to Marco Rubio. In 2012, he endorsed President Barack Obama and announced that he had registered as a Democrat. He lost his race as a Democratic candidate for governor in 2014.

True

0%

Mostly True

22%

Half True

0%

Mostly False

0%

False

0%

Pants on Fire

0%

Charlie Crist
stated on October 24, 2022 in a gubernatorial debate:

"Crime is up under Governor DeSantis. Crime was down when I was your governor."

By Yacob Reyes • October 28, 2022
Charlie Crist
stated on October 4, 2022 in a campaign ad:

"When I was your governor, we reduced insurance rates by 10%."

By Yacob Reyes • October 19, 2022
Charlie Crist
stated on August 25, 2022 in a tweet:

Gov. Ron DeSantis raised "taxes on the middle class by more than $1.5 billion while giving away $624 million to big corporations."

By Yacob Reyes • September 2, 2022
Charlie Crist
stated on July 14, 2022 in a campaign ad:

Ron DeSantis "opposes any background checks on guns, even for violent criminals."

By Yacob Reyes • July 22, 2022
Charlie Crist
stated on June 29, 2022 in a tweet:

"Ron DeSantis still hasn't condemned the Jan. 6 insurrection."

By Yacob Reyes • July 12, 2022

Rick Scott
stated on October 21, 2014 in the CNN debate:

Says Charlie Crist wants felons who "commit a heinous crime" such as "intentional permanent disfigurement of a child, you walk out of jail, you immediately get to vote."

By Amy Sherman • October 27, 2014
Rick Scott
stated on October 21, 2014 in a gubernatorial debate in Jacksonville:

Says Charlie Crist could have expanded Medicaid after the health care law passed but didn't.

By Joshua Gillin • October 22, 2014
Rick Scott
stated on October 15, 2014 in a debate:

"While (Charlie Crist) was governor, utility costs went up 30 percent and went from below the national average to above the national average. Since I got elected, utility rates have come down 11 percent and now we are below the average."

By Steve Contorno • October 21, 2014
Rick Scott
stated on October 15, 2014 in a gubernatorial debate in Davie:

Says Charlie Crist "voted against minimum wage when he was in the Senate."

By Joshua Gillin • October 16, 2014
Rick Scott
stated on October 15, 2014 in a debate at Broward College:

"3,000 teachers lost their jobs when (Crist) was governor."

By Lauren Carroll • October 15, 2014

Fact-checking journalism is the heart of PolitiFact. Our core principles are independence, transparency, fairness, thorough reporting and clear writing. The reason we publish is to give citizens the information they need to govern themselves in a democracy.

In a world of wild talk and fake news, help us stand up for the facts.