Neither did McCain.
None of the execrable 2008 field enjoyed anything resembling broad and deep support on FreeRepublic. Fred Thompason was a brief favorite. In the end, Huckabee, the charming charlatan, was probably the most popular.
Romney and McCain hardly moved the needle. And, once nominated, McCain redlined the disappointment meter.
The way I remember that was Juan McCain was almost universally despised on FR, even prior to nomination, with Romney not too far behind, as well as Newt.