It may be harder to find a living, breathing Republican in Somerville than in any other community in Massachusetts, which—spoiler alert—is one of the least Republican states in the country.

Based on recent voter enrollment numbers from the city, only about 4.2 percent of voters in Somerville are registered Republicans.

To be fair, there are three communities in the state with smaller proportions of enrolled GOP voters. In Provincetown, just under 3.3 percent of voters were registered Republicans in the 2010 state elections—not so shocking, perhaps.

In the town of Aquinnah, on the western tip of Martha's Vineyard, just 3.8 percent of voters were registered Republicans in 2010. There were 15 of them out of 398 total voters. Minorities they may be, but you'd probably know their faces. Also in 2010, in the town of Wendell, about 45 miles by car north of Springfield, 3.6 percent of voters were registered Republicans out of 681.

In Somerville, with nearly 39,000 voters enrolled at the moment, the 1646 Republicans are harder to spot. It's possible you've been in the presence of one and didn't realize it. That said, 98 out of 100 people in the city aren't registered Republicans.

A Republican in Somerville

This makes Brian McCarthy, a self-described "Reagan Republican" who says he's "far on the right, way to the right," a somewhat special person.

McCarthy is one of the city's few active Republicans. Having served as secretary of the Ward 3 Republican Committee, he recently moved to a new apartment and is now running to be chair of the Ward 5 Republican Committee.

Which doesn't exist yet.

If elected (he doesn't have an opponent), McCarthy will have 30 days to fill out the committee, he explained, which means finding someone to serve as secretary and someone else to serve as treasurer.

McCarthy acknowledges the committee probably won't be the largest political group in town, but he's hoping to recruit some members and looks forward to meeting with fellow Republicans and having discussions about political issues.

The task could be more challenging than it might seem. To file nomination papers, McCarthy had to collect five signature from registered Republicans or unenrolled voters. At first he sought out Republicans—there are about 259 in Ward 5—but he ultimately got five signatures from unenrolled voters. The sixth signature was his own.

A Republican from Somerville

Part of what makes McCarthy a political anomaly is that he didn't move here from somewhere else, like Utah or Wyoming or another place that leans right. He grew up right in Somerville.

Asked how he became a Republican, McCarthy thought his "conservative Catholic upbringing may have something to do with it."

That said, "My first interest in politics was Ronald Reagan," he said. As a boy, Reagan was a hero of his, along with Red Sox player Carl Yastrzemski.

Today, McCarthy describes himself as "pro-life," "pro-Second Amendment" and "pro-Israel." He's also a member of the Greater Boston Tea Party.

He volunteered for Mitt Romney's campaign when Romney ran for Senate, against Ted Kennedy, in 1994. He volunteered again when Romney ran for governor in 2002. Now, McCarthy supports Romney in the former governor's presidential bid.

McCarthy has a photo of himself with Romney, taken at a Christmas party following the failed 1994 senate run. "He bought beers for everyone, even though he doesn't drink himself," McCarthy said.

He also has an autographed baseball from Sen. Scott Brown, another politician McCarthy supports.

Despite being a red dot in blue town, to borrow imagery from Romney, McCarthy said of Massachusetts, "I think it's going to get redder this year." He thinks Republicans could pick up some congressional seats, especially after redistricting.

Seeking other Republicans

Here in Somerville, McCarthy is hoping to spread the word about the Ward 5 Republican Committee. If anyone's interested, they should email him at somervillegop@comcast.net. He also urged people to vote in the primary on March 6.