Charlie Crist to Speak to Louisiana Democrats in August

Former Gov. Charlie Crist will be hitting the road this August when the new Democrat will be speaking in New Orleans at the Louisiana Democratic Partys Jefferson-Jackson Day event.

We are proud to welcome Governor Crist to the party of Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Bill Clinton, Mary Landrieu and Barack Obama, said Louisiana Democratic Party Chair Karen Carter Peterson in a statement released Thursday. We are a big-tent party, with room for a diversity of opinions on many issues, and Governor Crists pragmatic populism is directly in line with the traditions of the Louisiana Democratic Party.

This will be the first time Governor Crist will be keynoting a high-profile Democratic event outside of Florida, and we are thrilled that he chose Louisiana to make his debut, Peterson added.

Crist spent most of his political career as a Republican, running for the U.S. Senate and serving in three statewide offices under the GOP label. After being caught in the polls by Marco Rubio in the U.S. Senate primary in 2010, Crist continued his Senate campaign with no party affiliation. In 2012, after endorsing Barack Obama for a second term, Crist registered as a Democrat and is one of that partys leading candidates to run against Republican Gov. Rick Scott in 2014.