Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum is on a roll, and he's about to roll into Akron.

Santorum is the featured speaker Saturday at the Summit County Republican Party's Lincoln Day dinner.

Local delegate and long-time political name Bryan C. Williams issued the invite to Santorum - long before he ascended to the top of the polls both in Ohio, and nationally.

"It just so happens that Rick Santorum is making a strong growth right now in Ohio," Williams tells AkronNewsNow.com, "and I think this Saturday will kind of cement his front runner status in Ohio."

Over 1350 attendees are expected to crowd Quaker Station to see Santorum's appearance.

Following his speech, the Summit County Republican Party will unveil the results of the party's straw poll.

An earlier straw poll in the Summit County party in 2007 gave the nod to Rudy Guiliani, with John McCain second and a surprising showing by Fred Thompson  - who wasn't even a candidate yet.

The second straw poll of the 2008 election season was more in line with reality at the time, says Williams.

"And at that time, then John McCain was the big front runner. He probably had 50 percent of the overall vote, and all of the other candidates combined had less," Williams relates to AkronNewsNow.com.

Williams says all ticketholders will get a straw poll ballot on Saturday evening, but are not required to participate in the polling.

Williams - an at-large delegate for Santorum - says Mitt Romney has a problem with conservative voters...

"I don't believe that Mitt Romney can earn the Republican nomination," Williams says, "because I believe that fully 60 percent of Republican primary voters are against him."

Santorium's Akron visit comes just days after Romney spoke at the Cuyahoga County Republican Party's Lincoln Day Dinner in Mayfield Heights.