“These are people who are slowly starting to focus on elections. Many of them, who had never been involved in politics before, were uninterested in the political parties, but are now treading carefully about how to get involved and where they get involved,” said Brendan Steinhauser, grass-roots director at FreedomWorks, the conservative organization headed by former House Republican leader Dick Armey of Texas.

Virtually all of the activists are new to politics, and the Hoffman campaign tapped into their forces from the start, with the help of FreedomWorks and other groups. Many were given key positions in the Hoffman campaign, where they learned quickly about the nuts-and-bolts of elective politics…

There will be plenty of targets for tea party enthusiasts in the coming year.