Gauging the clout of libertarian politics in the United States depends a great deal on whether you capitalize the letter "L."

There are "Big-L" Libertarians-those registered with the Libertarian Party and represented by Gary Johnson in the 2012 election. The former New Mexico governor secured 1,275,950 votes, or nearly 1 percent of the national vote, a statistically insignificant figure but a record for Libertarian candidates nonetheless. Numbers at state levels are relatively small, too. Take California, for instance: According to Feb. 10 data from the secretary of state's office, 109,636 voters-or 0.63 percent-are registered with the party.

Then there are the "little-L" libertarians-those who aren't necessarily registered but tend to adopt libertarian-tinged philosophies and talking points. Their numbers grow depending on how wide you cast the net. The Cato Institute, a conservative think tank, illustrated that idea in 2010: The more liberally you define libertarianism, the more people you can count. To wit: Fifty-nine percent of respondents to a Cato-commissioned poll dubbed themselves "fiscally conservative and socially liberal;" forty-four percent said they were "fiscally conservative and socially liberal, also known as libertarian." That's a huge numerical difference from registration figures.

Anecdotally, fervor has risen for both libertarian and Libertarian candidates, especially among younger voters. Consider the passion for Johnson and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who won a straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference in March, and for his father, Ron Paul, in the 2012 primaries.

To glimpse into how small-government principles have drawn those young voters, Yahoo News asked libertarian-minded Americans to share their stories. Here are excerpts from first-person accounts they wrote this week.

Libertarian thought a source of optimism

Piyali Bhattacharya with Ron PaulIn high school, Piyali Bhattacharya had a bleeding heart-she says she was a "very proud and outspoken liberal"-and questioned U.S. involvement in wars and believed in free health care and education for all. She re-evaluated those political leanings in college when she found "Google Ron Paul" scribbled in chalk on a sidewalk. Now 24, she works for Young Americans for Liberty, a nonprofit organization in Washington D.C.

In her words:

Less than ten minutes of research confirmed that I had found a candidate whose stances resonated with my own on nearly every issue. But more importantly, this man had been consistent for years about the importance of civil liberties, of a limited, constitutional government, of free market Austrian economics-and just how far politics and policy in America had strayed from those tenets," she writes.

War is still unpleasant when we are engaged in unconstitutional, unsustainable, and costly foreign intervention. I still believe in the rights of women and homosexuals-not because they belong to those groups, but because they are individuals and should be treated as such. And my bleeding heart hasn't hardened, but a deeper understanding of free market economics had led to the knowledge that limiting government and encouraging private charity are the best way to help those in need.

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Young 'Little-L' Libertarians Choose Principle Over Power