From the St. Petersburg Times:
Gov. Charlie Crist left the Republican Party at 3:40 p.m. Wednesday. Crist changed his party registration at a Pinellas Supervisor of Elections Office in St. Petersburg. The entire process took less than five minutes. When asked for party affiliation on a voter registration form, Crist checked "None." After he signed his name, making the party switch official, Crist looked up, smiled and said, "let freedom ring." [...] Crist also said he would not return money to GOP donors who have asked for it back. "People gave to a good cause and we're going to spend it on a good cause," Crist said. "That's why I'm going to keep it. It's important to be able to get our message out and communicate with the people of Florida."