Summit County Republicans to host Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in Akron next month

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is scheduled to visit local Republicans in Summit County next month.

The Summit County Republican Party is offering seats at its annual Lincoln Day Breakfast to those interested in seeing one of the two purported Republican front-runners in the upcoming 2024 presidential election.

Ticket prices for the April 13 event start at $100. The University of Akron has confirmed the party has rented its Quaker Station venue for that day.

Party Chairman Bryan Williams said county Republicans invited DeSantis to visit last year while DeSantis was running for reelection as governor of Florida.

"We invited him a year ago when we thought that he was out traveling and because he had done events in Pittsburgh and Youngstown. So we invited him just because we have a lot of interest in the county for him," Williams said.

After the Florida election, the party reissued the invitation and DeSantis' team responded, Williams said.

"When we do an invitation, we make sure to point out that Summit County is, in our view, the premier Republican event in the state − we have the largest Lincoln Day event in the state year in and year out. We've had a number of distinguished people in the past, including Reagan and both Bushes, who have found their way into the White House, along with John McCain and others like Rick Santorum, and others who have run.

"When you're barnstorming the country, this is the place − this is a place in Ohio you need to be."

Williams said many county Republicans have expressed support for DeSantis as a candidate for president.

"As much as I know about the the likelihood of him running, I do think he is a contender," Williams said. "I can tell you this: The Republicans in Summit County, all the time are asking, 'Do you think DeSantis is running?' and then they say 'I hope he runs' − so, I hear that with great regularity.

"That's not to say that Donald Trump is not without his strong support and that others aren't admired, such as Nikki Haley and Tim Scott ... In my view it is very accurate to say that there's a lot of Republicans in Summit County who want to see Ron DeSantis run for president, and I suspect many of them will be at our event."

DeSantis will also be in the Cincinnati area on April 13.

The Butler County Republican Party announced this month that DeSantis will headline the party's Lincoln Day Event at the Savannah Center in West Chester.

DeSantis to visit Cincinnati area:Ron DeSantis will travel to Butler County in April as he considers presidential run

Polls gauge support for Republican candidates, possible contenders

While DeSantis has not officially announced a run for the White House, he is being considered the top potential challenger to former President Donald Trump, who announced his bid for reelection in November.

A RealClearPolitics survey of polls taken from Feb. 15 to March 13 shows Trump ahead of possible opponents with just under 44% of Republicans supporting his nomination, with DeSantis in second place at 28%. Former South Carolina Gov. and U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley polled third at 6.3%. Haley announced her candidacy last month.

Other potential candidates put forward by pollsters, and their RCP polling averages, include former Vice President Mike Pence (6.3%), Texas Sen. Ted Cruz (2%), former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (1.4%), Florida Sen. Rick Scott (1.2%), South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (1%), and New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (0.8%).

One candidate who did not register in the polls is Ohio native Vivek Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur, author and conservative activist who has been profiled by national media and announced his candidacy in February on "Tucker Carlson Tonight."

Eric Marotta can be reached at emarotta@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @MarottaEric.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Summit county Republicans to host Fla. Gov. Ron DeSantis in April