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Success for the movement's candidates in state primaries could lead to an easier ride for Democratic candidates in November

Sharron Angle

Her victory in the Republican primary to contest one of Nevada's Senate seats is a setback for the party's attempts to oust one of its juiciest targets, the Democratic party leader in the Senate, Harry Reid. Polls show a mainstream Republican candidate would beat Reid, but Angle has fallen behind as the spotlight has focused on her personal views and ties to Scientology, which she denies.

Angle, right, favours abolishing the US education department because it is "unconstitutional" and because schooling should be left solely to local authorities. She says Washington should withdraw from the UN because it promotes un-American ideologies and has been "the umpire on fraudulent science such as global warming".

Angle has persistently denied being an adherent to Scientology despite attempting to promote some of its thinking such as in a prison drug rehabilitation programme in her state.

Rand Paul

An ophthalmologist and founder of Kentucky Taxpayers United, Paul is running for a Senate seat in Kentucky. He has built his political career on a platform of abolishing most taxes and has called for a "modern-day revolution" against a dominant federal government.

Paul created a stir this year when he criticised part of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which abolished segregation, and Jim Crow laws as unconstitutional because it bars business owners from excluding someone on the basis of race, religion or national origin. Paul says "community pressure" should govern such issues, not laws.

As Republican leaders recoiled at the damage done by his comments, Paul released a letter saying he "abhors racism" and that he would not back any efforts to repeal the civil rights act.

Paul wants to see the abolition of the Federal Reserve and its role in regulating the money supply and interest rates. He opposes the national government involvement in health care. And he was in favor of changing the constitution to ensure that the children of illegal immigrants do not become U.S. citizens.

But Paul is not afraid of contrarian positions. He opposes the US Patriot Act, cornerstone of neo-conservative legislation passed by the Bush administration after 9/11 which permits widespread intrusions on personal liberty including warrantless searches and surveillance. He says he would have voted against the invasion of Iraq. He also favours the legalisation of marijuana for medical use and believes US states should decide the issue of same-sex marriage, although he is opposed.

He opposes abortion in all cases, but for the benefit of access to the morning-after pill.

Carl Paladino

His nomination developer as the Republican candidate for governor of New York has been described as "self-immolation" by the Republican party after he kicked off his campaign with the classic Mr Angry line from the film Network: "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take it anymore."

Paladino was for many years a Democrat but switched in 2005 and is now backed by the Tea Party movement. He has compared trade unions to pigs wants a review of land restitution to Native American tribes in New York state, and would repeal a state ban on assault weapons. He has suggested that welfare recipients should be housed in vacant prison cells to teach them about personal hygiene and to learn job skills.

He has said that Obama's healthcare reforms will cost more lives than the 9/11 attacks.

Paladino has offered only a grudging apology for sending racist and pornographic emails to friends, including one of a woman having sex with a horse and another in which Barack and Michelle Obama appear as a pimp and a prostitute. In another, Africans dance under the caption: "Obama inauguration rehearsal." One contains a picture of African men trying to get away from a plane that appears to be about to land on them with the caption: "Holy shit: run niggers, run!"

Paladino has said he is "not politically correct" and made a mistake in forwarding the emails to friends but said he did not regard it as any great crime.

Mike Lee

Highly favoured for election to the Senate as the Republican candidate in the conservative state of Utah, Lee is a potential nightmare for his party in Washington. He is in favour of abolishing whole departments, including education and energy, and getting the government out of health care.

He also favours abolishing progressive income tax with higher rates for the better off and replacing it with a flat tax.

However, Lee's interpretations of the constitution are contentious to say the least. The Salt Lake Tribune put it this way: "His notions of the founding document are reactionary, so extreme, in fact, that we doubt they will ever find traction in mainstream American legal or political thinking. To do so would require reversing much of the jurisprudence of the 20th century."

Like Rand Paul, he is against the constitutional guarantee of citizenship to anyone born in the US including the children of illegal immigrants.

"If you're born to parents of illegal aliens who have come here in open violation of our laws, you're not born in the US and subject to the jurisdiction thereof," he argued.

Joe Miller

He pulled off an upset victory as the Tea Party candidate for the Republican nomination for one of Alaska's seats in the Senate with the backing of the state's former governor, Sarah Palin.

A former army officer, who earned a Bronze Star medal in the war to drive Iraq out of Kuwait, the father of eight came from nowhere to win the nomination in the face of opposition from the Republican establishment.

Miller says he is wedded to what he sees as the original intent of the constitution to greatly limit the power of government, and routinely describes President Obama as a socialist. He favours slashing federal government including in Alaska which receives a disproportionately high amount of tax dollars. That may not endear him to some voters but his victory appears to reflect a shift among others toward greatly limiting government spending even if that has an impact on Alaska.

Miller wants to limit the powers of Congress. He would eliminate the education department, cut arts funding, reduce foreign aid and says that the evidence for global warming is "dubious at best".

Because of Alaska 'S strong Republican leanings, Miller favored to win election in November. But it may well be a headache for his party 'S leaders in the Senate.

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