FL: Crist Finds Groove as Independent, Pulls Ahead in Polls

From the AP:

A Republican no longer, Gov. Charlie Crist just can't seem to get enough of President Barack Obama or Democratic priorities. The independent is behaving more like the independent he is in Florida's wildly unpredictable Senate race, standing with the president, courting organized labor and vetoing legislation to ban embryonic stem cell research at the state's universities.

From the St. Petersburg Times:

A new Florida Chamber of Commerce poll suggests Charlie Crist may be widening his lead over Republican Marco Rubio and Democrat Kendrick Meek in the U.S. Senate race. Where other recent polls showed Crist barely edging out Rubio, the June 9-13 survey of 607 likely voters by the Florida Chamber of Commerce Political Institute and Cherry Communications found 42 percent backing Crist, 31 percent Rubio and 14 percent Meek. The margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points.

It also found Rick Scott leading Bill McCollum for the Republican gubernatorial nomination, 35 percent to 30 percent; and both Republicans leading Democrat Alex Sink and independent Lawton "Bud" Chiles III. For the general election, Scott and McCollum were favored by 31 percent and 30 percent respectively, while Chief Financial Officer Sink drew 26 percent and Chiles 15 percent.