‘Down-to-earth’ Santorum wins fans

Sporting his signature sweater vest and telling stories of his coal miner grandfather, Republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum has struck a chord in the US Rust Belt that is helping propel his once long-shot candidacy.

Although he is a millionaire, Santorum has found a common touch that has helped put him atop opinion polls in the industrial states of Michigan and Ohio and raised serious doubts about whether longtime front-runner Mitt Romney can win the Republican nomination to take on President Barack Obama in the November 6 election. Santorum's portrayal of himself as the blue-collar Republican has managed to overshadow Romney's jobs message in a part of the country troubled by unemployment. “He's basically down-to-earth,” said Janice Thomas, 56, of Pickerington, Ohio, who is retired.

Santorum's life, though, is far from ordinary. He spent 12 years in the Senate, known as the “world's most exclusive club,” and earned degrees in law and business. He purchased a luxury Audi sedan and earned hundreds of thousands of dollars as a consultant in recent years. Santorum's 2010 salary - $923 000 - placed him squarely within the top 1% of income earners in America. Yet he can still draw a sharp contrast to Romney, a former Massachusetts governor whose fortune is estimated at up to $270 million and who often makes gaffes that show a lack of familiarity with ordinary Americans' struggles.

Santorum's previous criticism of the government bailout of the auto industry in 2009 might be a problem in Michigan where millions of people rely on the car companies. But Romney was a more vocal opponent of the rescue, leaving his rival's opposition to it largely overlooked.

A Detroit News poll, released last week, showed Santorum leading Romney 34% to 30% in Michigan, the state where Romney was born and where his father was governor. A Quinnipiac poll had Santorum leading Romney 36% to 29% in Ohio. Michigan's primary is on February 28 and Ohio votes on March 6.

A political climate featuring renewed debate over religious freedom, contraception and gay rights has benefited the devoutly Catholic Santorum among evangelical Republicans. In the Inside Michigan Poll, Michigan voters who said social issues were most important to them chose Santorum over Romney by 64% to 19%.

click to enlarge CONTENDER: Republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum