Paul has been courting student support pretty aggressively.

Red Alert Politics reports.

Skipping debate boosted Rand Paul’s stock with students

It’s possible that Rand Paul’s exclusion from the main stage of the latest presidential debate may have actually given his campaign a much-needed boost.

Paul’s National Youth Director Cliff Maloney Jr. told Red Alert Politics that student support is surging after the senator held his own online town hall on Thursday evening.

“Dr. Paul was not going to be relegated to the kiddie table when we have a top tier campaign and are building momentum,” Maloney said. “Student sign-ups are pouring in nationwide after a night of hearing directly from Senator Paul with specific solutions to our nations issues. Young people want someone authentic, someone who is real, someone who truly means what he says and says what he means.”

The amount of media attention Paul gained by choosing to sit out the debate exceeded the media he would have received from participating. The campaign reported an estimated 15 million people tuned in to Paul’s television appearances this week, not to mention the numerous radio and print interviews he did on the subject. He gained the fourth-most Twitter followers out all the GOP candidates during the debate, without even appearing onstage.

A Twitter representative told Business Insider it was “honestly pretty impressive” for Paul to crowd out other conversation on social media during the debate to have the third-most-popular hashtag in the country.

American University student Josh Singer said the town hall event got students at the Washington D.C. school talking about Paul.

“His appearance on the Daily Show and the airtime he has had on non-traditional media sources like Periscope, Twitter, and Snapchat have increased his popularity at my university; and even among those who dislike him there is a new found respect for him because he sticks to his beliefs and doesn’t back down against the establishment,” Singer said. “His unique campaign has attracted interest among college students and his refreshing beliefs are slowly attracting new supporters on campus.”