Now, as he competes in the Michigan presidential primary for the nomination, Karger wears his grandfather’s ring, who was a Jewish activist while he was alive, as a reminder of his own defiance.

“I just started wearing this after the Prop 8 loss — it’s kind of my silent rebellion,” Karger said.

Karger is gay, Jewish and a Republican presidential candidate vying for Michigan in next Tuesday’s primary.

“There are some people who might have issue with those two, you know, claims of mine,” Karger said. “However I think the public and certainly, you know, young people are looking much more for someone who can bring back the spirit of America, put America back to work.”

While Karger has acknowledged winning Michigan is a long shot, he does have a goal: winning the state’s 8th District, which East Lansing is a part of and would land him three delegates. To achieve this goal, he’s hit the streets of East Lansing, running television ads and attending public engagements.

“He’s right off the bat different from most candidates from the fact he was talking about being openly gay,” said environmental economics and policy sophomore Ellen Hendrickson, who saw Karger speak in her journalism class Friday.

But his appeal wasn’t enough to attract Hendrickson’s vote, who plans to vote for Ron Paul because of his staunch anti-war foreign policy.

“I think (Paul has) got the most common sense out of all the Republican candidates,” she said.

Still, Karger is quick to note his victory over Michele Bachmann in the New Hampshire primary, although she had dropped out of the race after the Iowa caucuses.

Brynn Boyd, vice chairwoman of the MSU College Republicans and a Mitt Romney supporter, said she hadn’t heard of Karger, but at least agrees with his sentiment that young voters focus less on social issues. Now, it’s mostly about the economy, she said.

Hailing from California, Karger has never held an elected office, instead touting his résumé as a lesbian, bisexual, gay and transgender activist and a Republican political strategist.

“I’m pro-choice, I’m for marijuana legalization, I want us out of Afghanistan now and I support gay marriage,” Karger said. “These are positions held by none of the other candidates.”