Mark Albertini

Local supporters of presidential candidate and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, said they are holding out hope for their man despite single-digit poll numbers and the lack of a primary win.

“We’re still extremely, extremely hopeful,” said Lauren Walker, assistant organizer for the Chattanooga Ron Paul meetup group. “The Republican National Convention isn’t until September. It’s all going to come down, basically, to the convention.”

Rep. Paul’s son, Rand Paul, is expected to make an appearance in Chattanooga on Saturday at 1601 Rossville Ave. at 9 a.m.

Rep. Paul’s best primary showing so far has been a second-place finish in Nevada, where he garnered 14 percent of the vote. He has not gotten more than 10 percent in any other state’s primary.

According to a poll of 1,093 likely Republican primary voters conducted by Public Policy Polling, a Democratic, Raleigh, N.C.-based polling firm, about 6 percent of Tennessee Republicans are planning to vote for Rep. Paul.

Ms. Walker said she was drawn to Rep. Paul because of his calls for doing away with the Internal Revenue Service and the federal income tax.

“He cured my apathy,” she said.

Bob Swansbrough, a political science professor at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, said Rep. Paul’s supporters are “very enthusiastic,” though the group may not be very large.

“He also has fewer funds,” Dr. Swansbrough said.

Ms. Walker said that lack of funding led to supporters taking up something akin to guerrilla campaign tactics, with spray-painted signs in unconventional locations.

“That kind of thing started out of necessity,” she said. “We said, ‘What can we afford? We can afford spray paint.’”

Joe Dumas, who ran as a Libertarian against County Commissioner Richard Casavant in 2006, said he believes Rep. Paul will do better in Tennessee than he has in other states.

Mr. Dumas, who recently switched to the Republican Party because of Rep. Paul, said the Texas congressman could gain support in the Volunteer State now that former U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., is out of the race.

“There’s not another candidate running I think I could support,” he said.

Mr. Dumas said that even though Rep. Paul is unlikely to win the GOP nomination, he has “ignited a movement” to re-shape the Republican party.

Mark Albertini, a Chattanooga Republican who ran in the GOP primary for governor in 2006, said he voted for Rep. Paul in the recent early voting period. He said he disagrees with the congressman’s support for immediately ending the Iraq war, but he is drawn to the candidate’s calls for limited government.

“I think his message rings in the hearts of people who realize that (in) this country, we’re losing our greatness because of our debt and our instability,” Mr. Albertini said.

Mr. Albertini said if Rep. Paul leaves the presidential race, he’ll likely back U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., or former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.

Hamilton County Democratic Party Chairman John Bailes said Rep. Paul’s approach appeals to libertarians and some Republicans upset that the GOP has given up its “conservative principles.”

Mr. Bailes said he doesn’t see Rep. Paul having any real, lasting effect on this year’s presidential race.

“I think he’ll be known more for his guerrilla sign tactics,” he said, laughing.

Robin Smith, a Hixson resident who is chairwoman of the Tennessee Republican Party, praised Rep. Paul’s status as a “fiscal hawk.” She said he is bringing attention to small government, which she said is an important principle that the GOP has drifted away from in recent years.

But she said his anti-war position and left-of-center positions on issues such as drug decriminalization are out of synch with the views of many Republicans.

“I wouldn’t say he doesn’t belong (in the party),” Mrs. Smith said. “Just so many of the things he says … contradict some of the platform stances that are truly the foundation of the Republican party.”