Mike Huckabee often reminds voters of his humble beginnings.

The former Arkansas governor and underdog Republican presidential hopeful was the first male in his family to graduate from high school. His mother grew up in a house with a dirt floor, no electricity and outdoor plumbing. His father worked two jobs — one as a firefighter, the other as a mechanic.

In campaign speeches, Huckabee commonly notes he doesn't have a Washington address because he's a regular guy like everybody else.

While campaigning in Pewaukee, Wis. last week, Huckabee quoted the prophet Isaiah.

"Look to the rock from which you were hewn," Huckabee told supporters at the Country Springs Hotel, "and to the quarry from which you were dug."

Ask those who know the candidate. They'll say Huckabee has never wavered in his faith and has never forgotten his beginnings as a Baptist preacher.

In 1986, Huckabee began a six-year stint as pastor for Beech Street First Baptist Church in Texarkana, Ark. There, Huckabee started a television ministry that still airs today and, according to Charles Decker Barnette, a local lawyer and lifelong member of the church, immediately captured the congregation with his forceful style of preaching.

"He has always had the gift of communication," Barnette said. "They call Reagan 'The Great Communicator' but I think Mike is as great, if not greater, than Reagan or Lincoln."

Huckabee's campaign rallies reflect his Southern-style preaching. His supporters in Pewaukee called out to their candidate — "Yes, uh-huh, amen," they said — as he regaled them with stories reflecting his largely faith-based campaign.

Rick Calhoun, a securities trader in Arkansas, called his friend "a wonderful example of Christian faith in one's life."

But while Huckabee's faith drives him, sources said he isn't one to force it on others.

"He feels a man's faith is important but it's not to be used as a rolled up newspaper to beat you over the head with," Calhoun said.

Huckabee's campaign talking points have consistently been a Constitutional ban on abortion and defining marriage as between one man and one woman. But there are other things voters should know about Huckabee, friends said. He's funny. He's an outdoorsman. And he doesn't forget his origins.

In 1996 Huckabee stepped into the Arkansas governorship after the previous governor was indicted on charges involving a development scandal, Huckabee called Calhoun for a jam session in the basement of the governor's mansion. Calhoun and Huckabee had met when Calhoun's band played Huckabee and his now-wife Janet's high school prom in 1973. Although the two had lost touch for some years, they started a band called Capitol Offense that has opened shows for Willie Nelson and Charlie Daniels Band.

"He is an authentic individual," Calhoun said. "It's not uncommon for him to be moving amps and setting up equipment with the rest of us."

The band started a Fourth of July tradition at the lake home of David and Debbie Haak when they played a 250-person barbecue. The Haaks have been family friends of the Huckabees for more than 20 years, and vacationed in Alaska and the Caribbean with the former governor, his wife and three children — John David, Mark and Sarah.

"You know that old adage that says you want to vote for the guy you'd like to have a beer with?" Calhoun said. "Mike's that guy. Except of course, he doesn't drink.

"He's a self-made, self-motivated individual."

Calhoun attributes Huckabee's drive and motivation to his strong faith.

When Huckabee left Beech Street First Baptist in 1992 to run for a U.S. Senate seat, he told Haak he and Janet had prayed about the decision and felt entering politics was something God wanted Huckabee to do.

Huckabee lost that race (before being elected lieutenant governor the next year) and Haak recalls telling him, "You did exactly what the Lord told you. But He didn't tell you that you were gonna win."

Despite being an underdog in the race for the Republican nomination, 51-year-old Huckabee said last week he will not drop his campaign. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) currently leads the race and is winning endorsements from Republicans in Arkansas, including state legislators who worked with Huckabee during his governorship. But McCain lacks support from Christian conservatives — a voting bloc that roots, and prays, for Huckabee.

"Everything he has done has been a David and Goliath situation," Barnette said. "He is behind in votes, but I believe that at some point a miracle will happen."