Rick Scott will be the featured speaker next week at a Boca Raton Republican Club fund-raiser, underscoring the political crosswinds buffeting the governor these days.

Polls show Scott remains unpopular with most Floridians – a position Florida Democrats hope to exploit in coming weeks by tying the governor to presumptive presidential nominee Mitt Romney. The state GOP poured almost $1 million into TV advertising the past six weeks, trying to bolster the governor’s image.

 But narrow the audience to just Republicans — and Scott’s holding his own. He even draws praise for attending plenty of state GOP events, like the $50-per-person fund-raiser planned the evening of May 15 at the Marriott at Boca Center.

Palm Beach County Republican Chairman Sid Dinerstein told the Post for a Sunday story on Scott’s political standing that Democrats will be mistaken if they think he’ll hurt Romney in the state. Dinerstein said Scott’s draw among Republicans was evident at last weekend’s state GOP meeting in Tampa, where the governor drew a standing ovation that refused to quit.

“He couldn’t get people to sit down,” Dinerstein said. “They love him. He’s done the Lincoln Day dinners. He’s been a partner in our fundraising. If the Democrats want to use him against Romney, I say bring it on.”