He started off with a nod to liberal opponents of the sonogram legislation, saying the bill “places an inappropriate burden on women seeking to terminate a pregnancy.”

Image Gov. Charlie Crist, running for the Senate as an independent, took a centrist approach. Credit... Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Mr. Crist then emphasized that his own personal views, which he has most recently described as “pro-life,” “should not result in laws that unwisely expand the role of government.” That explanation, along with a mention of women’s right to privacy, seemed aimed at Tea Party libertarians.

Finally, he said financial and medical measures that make it harder for women to end their pregnancies “do not change hearts, which is the only true and effective way to ensure that a new life coming into the world is loved.”

Compassionate conservatives and parents of all persuasions may be hard pressed to disagree.

Political opponents immediately pounced. The law would have required doctors to perform ultrasounds and show and describe the image to patients unless they signed a refusal.

Abortion rights advocates praised the governor’s veto. But Kendrick Meek, the leading Democrat in the Senate race (who favors abortion rights), told reporters that the veto was simply a cynical effort to gain traction in the campaign. “I think a lot of this has to do with political expedience,” Mr. Meek said.