Parties make strategic decisions about how to conduct presidential primaries. What are some of these decisions and how might these decisions ultimately affect the selection of candidate and the policy positions adopted in the general election?

What will be an ideal response?

The strategic decisions a party makes during the presidential primary season are
Four fold. First, the party must choose what type of primary to employ—open or closed. An open primary allows independents and non-party members to vote, which might muddy the waters in candidate selection. Second, the party must choose between a primary election and a caucus. Caucuses tend to attract more committed voters who have to openly express their views, which aids outsiders. Primary elections, in contrast, tend to support party establishment candidates. Third, they must decide on timing. Earlier primaries garner more attention for a state but can also frame the election in unwanted ways around the demographic and political issues prominent in the early-voting states. Fourth and finally, parties must decide on delegate allocation at the national conventions. For instance, unlike the Republicans, the Democratic Party employs superdelegates, elected officials who are not bound by their states’ result, which means Democratic candidates tend to be more closely aligned to the party establishment.