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Ron Paul Will Stop Campaigning, But Will Continue Delegate Hunt

Republican presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, in February.
Robert F. Bukaty
/
AP
Republican presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, in February.

Rep. Ron Paul, of Texas, issued a carefully worded statement today, saying his team will no longer campaign in the rest of the primary states.

Does that mean he's bowing out of the GOP primary and leaving the nomination all to Mitt Romney? Not really.

"Our campaign will continue to work in the state convention process," Paul said in the statement. "We will continue to take leadership positions, win delegates, and carry a strong message to the Republican National Convention that Liberty is the way of the future."

He goes on to ask his supporters in the remaining primary states to vote for him, even though he can't spend the "tens of millions" it would take to succesfully win their states.

"I hope all supporters of Liberty will remain deeply involved – become delegates, win office, and take leadership positions," Paul said. "I will be right there with you. In the coming days, my campaign leadership will lay out to you our delegate strategy and what you can do to help, so please stay tuned."

Update at 2:50 p.m. ET. Convention Worry:

Paul's campaign made some news this weekend. His supporters booed Romney's son off stage during an Arizona Republican Party convention. And in Oklahoma Paul supporters brawled with Romney supporters.

As the left-leaning Talking Points Memo reports, all of this has led to some worry that the Republican Convention could be a chaotic event, because Paul has enough delegates to make his presence felt.

Update at 3:42 p.m. ET. How Much Money Does Paul Have?

NPR's Padmananda Rama tells us that at the end of March, "the Paul campaign had just under $2 million in cash on hand." Romney had $10 million.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Eyder Peralta is NPR's East Africa correspondent based in Nairobi, Kenya.