Former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist says he's backing Barack Obama in the 2012 presidential race.
The former Republican made the announcement in an op-ed piece published in Sunday's Tampa Bay Times. The endorsement came as Republicans are gathering in the Tampa Bay area for the GOP convention. It also came amid preparations statewide for Tropical Storm Isaac.
Crist left the Republican Party during his unsuccessful bid for a U.S. Senate seat in 2010 and is currently registered as having no party affiliation. He was elected governor of Florida as a Republican in 2006.
SPECIAL: Can Romney Defeat Obama? Vote Now!
In the Tampa Bay Times article, Crist wrote he's "confident that President Barack Obama is the right leader for our state and the nation."
Republicans wasted no time in slamming Crist for his choice -- and his timing.
Florida GOP Chairman Lenny Curry in an e-mail to Florida Republicans called Crist's endorsement on what would have been the eve of the GOP convention a "repugnant display from a self-centered, career politician."
“Make no mistake about it: This is Charlie Crist trying to shed his skin for a political comeback,” Curry said.
“Calling him a liberal will only play into his hand,” Curry wrote. “He hopes it will divert attention away from his record and his years of calling himself a conservative. You should take every opportunity with the media to remind Floridians that Crist has made a career out of bashing the Democrat Party and everything President Obama stands for.”
“I’ve said it time and again,” former GOP spokesman Brian Hughes told the Miami Herald of Crist in an email, “he is the silly putty of Florida politics, he’ll bend whatever direction you want and if you smash him against the newspaper he’ll offer you a poll-tested, mirror version.”
SPECIAL: Can Romney Defeat Obama? Vote Now!
© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.