[Designer]

Republican nominees are elected by Republican voters, in most states anyway. Your beef is with Republican voters, not the "party" as a separate entity.

Firstly; I would ask that you please go back and re-read my post, as you seem to have gotten some of it wrong.

Secondly; You're wrong!

Republican candidates are nominated by the most influential members of the party.

Then candidates are elected.

Furthermore, most voters are far too ignorant to know who to vote for.

[epow]

Secondly; You're wrong!

Republican candidates are nominated by the most influential members of the party.

Then candidates are elected.

I don't think so. I think you have the terms reversed.

A candidate is anyone who runs for his or her party's nomination, and the nominee is the candidate who the party's nominating convention chooses to run for the office in the general election. That's why it's called a nominating convention.

Delegates to the nominating convention may or may not be the "most influential members of the party", but in either case they are still either elected by Republican voters in primaries or chosen by a caucus composed of party members.