Interesting, it feels to me like the parties do pick the candidates (in the Democratic Party at least). They obviously don't pick directly (and they work hard

Interesting, it feels to me like the parties do pick the candidates (in the Democratic Party at least). They obviously don't pick directly (and they work hard to maintain the perception that they are neutral on primary candidates), but between super delegates, debate entry rules, and media coordination (such as airtime and exposure), it's pretty stacked in favor of the candidate preferred by those in popwer. And that's before there's any direct coordination between the party and the candidate[1]. [1]: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jul/24/debbie-wasserman-schultz-resigns-dnc-chair-emails-sanders https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jul/24/debbie-wasse...