5/27/2008 Much of the focus of the upcoming South Dakota primary is on the Democrat race, where Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are running a close race. But on the Republican side, there is a candidate opposing Senator John McCain, the presumptive nominee. Representative Ron Paul from Texas has "signs" of support popping up around South Dakota. Drive around Sioux Falls, and y More.. ou might notice a name the national news rarely mentions in the 2008 Presidential Race - Republican candidate Ron Paul, his campaign led by an almost completely grassroots effort. "Many Ron Paul supporters have spent some of the last dimes and pennies they have for buttons and for fliers and for signs," says University of South Dakota student David Whitesock. Paul is a U.S. Representative from Texas with Libertarian beliefs. He's against the Iraq war and is pro-life. He's also against big government, federal taxes and forming federal agencies. He focuses on following the Constitution. Those are beliefs Whitesock believes were traditionally shared by conservatives, but Democrat and Republican policies have now become too similar. "A conservative, which Ron Paul is, is very much to the right of what John McCain is. He's a true conservative," Whitesock says. That's why Paul is still actively running against John McCain for the Republican nomination. Many Ron Paul supporters say they're realistic about Paul's chances of receiving the nomination. But they still say a vote for him counts. "Regardless of who becomes president in 2008, that message will continue, and hopefully in 2012, somebody like a Ron Paul, maybe not Ron Paul but someone like Ron Paul can step up and be even more viable," Whitesock says. Even though McCain already won enough delegates for the nomination, Paul won 16 percent of the vote in Pennsylvania and 15 percent in Oregon. His supporters have similar hopes for South Dakota. "I certainly do think, with the libertar...