At age 30, Curtis Schultz checked out of politics.

He tried being a Republican, but quickly grew frustrated with candidates who talked of small government but strayed in office. He dabbled in Libertarian politics, but chafed at wasting a vote.

"I never thought I'd be involved again," Schultz said.

But now, every Saturday morning, Schultz and about a dozen other supporters stand on the unshaded corner of Beneva and Bee Ridge roads in Sarasota, waving signs and pleading with motorists to hear their cry for Republican presidential hopeful Ron Paul, one of the darkest of dark-horse candidates.

Similar gatherings crowd corners in Venice and Bradenton. Over the past couple of weeks, they have started attending traditional Republican Party meetings, stumping for the 72-year-old Texas doctor, who they say is the "hope for America."

They are giving more than time. In Sarasota and Bradenton, Paul has raised more money than John McCain and John Edwards.

Nationally, Paul raised $5 million in the past three months. That more than doubled his campaign's first-quarter donations, and came during a period when most candidates reported a slowdown in donations.

The support has allowed the Paul campaign to expand both in reach and size. The campaign staff has been increased to 44 workers from 10 over the past 10 weeks.

But a passionate following and surprising fundraising has yet to put Paul on many voters' radar screens. In the most recent Quinnipiac Polling Institute survey, only 2 percent of registered Republicans said Paul would get their vote.

Supporters such as Schultz are undaunted.

"People just don't know who he is," he said. "We just have to get his name out."

What they see in Paul is a candidate they believe will not just talk conservative fiscal policy, but live it. During his 10 terms in Congress, Paul has not voted for an unbalanced budget. He does not take government-paid trips, regularly opposes budget earmarks and has voted against any attempt to raise congressional pay.

Paul, who ran for president on the Libertarian Party ticket in 1988, said his campaign never could have had the money to coordinate what people are doing, not just in Sarasota, but throughout the country. He said people are taking it upon themselves to hit the streets and organize.

"People want to know what we are doing to get these people to do all this," Paul said in a recent interview. "But I don't do anything. They just do it on their own. It's not me. It's the message."

Paul's agenda includes abolishing the IRS, reducing foreign aid, withdrawing all troops from Iraq and opposing free trade.

Those views are core Libertarian principles, so why is Paul not running again as a Libertarian, as he did in 1988? Paul said running as a Republican makes it easier to get on the ballot and to attract national attention.

By running as a Republican, Paul is also trying to attract voters who want the GOP to embrace what some see as its bedrock philosophies: less government, fiscal conservatism and less intervention around the world.

"The Republicans changed," Paul said. "I didn't."

Paul has staked himself out as the only Republican candidate opposing the Iraq war. He routinely elicits applause at debates for saying the war was a mistake.

For those already harboring a healthy distrust of government, it is an agenda that has driven them to become involved in a process they never envisioned they would be a part of.

"I had never contributed to a campaign before," said Sarasota resident Jason Millburn, who like Schultz never cared much about politics until he discovered Paul. "My mother couldn't believe I was going to a presidential debate. I had never even voted in a primary before."

Despite the passion of Paul's supporters, political experts wonder if he is really building a constituency.

Larry Sabato, a University of Virginia political scientist, said Paul appeals to a finite number of supporters that have traditionally voted Libertarian. It is conceivable Paul could get up to 5 percent of the GOP vote in some states, Sabato said, but that is a long way from becoming the nominee.

Still, Sarasota Republican Party chairman Eric Robinson said he wishes more Republicans carried the passion of the Paul supporters.

"Who waves signs this far from the election?" Robinson asked.

Paul is banking on the Internet to generate a groundswell of attention he likely will not get from traditional media. On Meetup.com, where Howard Dean rose from obscure governor to Democratic Party leader, Paul backers have 40,000 members in 700 cities and towns. Paul said his campaign is adding 20,000 people a day to its volunteer lists.

Paul said he wishes he could reward his supporters in Sarasota and Bradenton with a campaign stop. But he said the focus has to be on building in Iowa and New Hampshire, the first two states to vote in the nominating process.

"We're going to be able to run a real good campaign in New Hampshire," Paul said.

Still, even if he is not in Florida, Paul's supporters say they will be on the corners making sure people hear his name.

Chris Porto, a 47-year-old Sarasota resident, said he never expected he would be so involved in a Republican Party primary race or find others who would be there with him on the street corners.

"We had no idea there were people like us out there," Porto said.

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