“It is politically wise to stay away from polarizing positions if you want to win elections... The way to improve any situation is to gain the power to influence that situation through legislation and court appointments and you can’t do that if you loose elections.”
Then how do you know that you are electing an actual alternative?
You do your homework. What are this person's qualifications. What has this person achieved. What is this person's character. Is there anyone better qualified to do the job.
There were "conservatives" who did not support Gov. Romney because he was a Mormon (of course there were other reasons also) but there is no question that this country would have been much better off if he had won the last election.