As of March 10, Rep. Ron Paul has not won any state contests for the Republican presidential nomination. But look what he has done for his libertarian brand of Republicanism. Sheahan Virgin at FairVote.org noted March 8 that of the 22 contests up to that time, Paul had bested his 2008 showing in 21 of them.

The exception, Idaho, is not a fair comparison because in 2008 it was held late in May when Paul’s only opponent was John McCain, whereas this year all the major candidates were involved. In the figures below I leave out Idaho, and also Virginia, where Paul won 40 percent of a primary vote this year—but was on the ballot with Romney only.