Are Ron Paul Supporters Republicans? Only 7% of RP Supporters Are Active in GOP

Recent analysis has shown that Ron Paul is doing well despite having only an estimated 7% of supporters active in the GOP.

Making massive inroads in the nomination process with such a paltry show of support begs the question: Where are his other supporters?

A common observation is that they are online instead of out in the real world. Judging from Ron Paul’s perfect online polling results – he's nearly impossible to beat in an online poll – this claim seems to ring true.

If it's so easy to be influential in the GOP, why aren't more of his supporters active?

"The day Paul supporters recognize the power they have in the GOP is the day we'll take over the party. Our numbers are great, but we will remain fairly ineffective until we wake up and use this party as a vehicle for liberty," claimed one Paul supporter early last week following a successful Nevada Republican Convention in which Ron Paul supporters took 88% of the national delegates, and Mitt Romney’s supporters secured the remaining 12%. Other state Republican parties are also voting strongly in favor of Paul, but his opponents appear to outnumber his supporter is many states.

Does this mean that all is lost for Ron Paul? Well, not exactly, the more his delegate strategy pays off the more support it seems to generate from his supporters. This 7% number seems to be up from the 4-5% of active supporters Paul had during the post-Super Tuesday lull.

Further analysis shows that if every Paul supporter brought just one friend with him/her as a delegate, it seems that Paul’s influence would easily be doubled and that those delegates would be able to take the GOP by storm. The GOP establishment and their preferred candidate – Mitt Romney – are understandably concerned about this. This sheds light on the reasons that the Romney campaign seeks to so aggressively marginalize Ron Paul. He's a dominant force, even with only 7% of his supporters active. If more of his supporters would step up to lead in the Republican Party, this nomination would be a foregone conclusion.