---
title: "Party Nomination of Candidates — AP Gov Definition"
description: "Party nomination is how parties pick their candidates for office. AP Gov tests why this party power weakened after primaries and candidate-centered campaigns."
canonical: "https://fiveable.me/ap-gov/key-terms/party-nomination-of-candidates"
type: "key-term"
subject: "AP US Government"
unit: "Unit 5"
---

# Party Nomination of Candidates — AP Gov Definition

## Definition

Party nomination of candidates is the process by which a political party selects the person who will run under its label in the general election; in AP Gov (Topic 5.4), the key point is that this party power has weakened as primaries and candidate-centered campaigns shifted control from party leaders to voters.

## What It Is

Party nomination of candidates is exactly what it sounds like. Before anyone can be "the Democratic nominee" or "the Republican nominee," the party has to settle on one person to carry its banner into the [general election](/ap-gov/unit-5/electing-president/study-guide/ZHiyfIScEjhLmiSHs7If "fv-autolink"). For most of American history, party leaders made that call themselves, often in [conventions](/ap-gov/key-terms/conventions "fv-autolink") or smoke-filled backroom deals where loyalty to the party machine mattered more than appeal to voters.

The CED's headline point (Essential Knowledge under 5.4.A) is that this role has been **weakened**. Reforms like the McGovern-Fraser Commission pushed parties toward primaries and caucuses, which hand the nomination decision to ordinary voters instead of party insiders. At the same time, campaigns became candidate-centered, meaning the public focuses on the individual candidate's personality, brand, and [fundraising](/ap-gov/unit-5/modern-campaigns/study-guide/bDZVglv4xI4UVWT2BM7Q "fv-autolink") rather than the party itself. The result is that parties now *support* candidates more than they *select* them. A candidate can build a personal following, raise their own money, and win a primary even if party leaders would rather have someone else.

## Why It Matters

This term lives in **[Unit 5](/ap-gov/unit-5 "fv-autolink") (Political Participation), Topic 5.4: How and Why Political Parties Change**, and directly supports learning objective **5.4.A**: explain why and how political parties change and adapt. The weakened nominating role is one of the CED's named examples of party adaptation, alongside [candidate-centered campaigns](/ap-gov/key-terms/candidate-centered-campaigns "fv-autolink"), demographic coalition-building, critical elections, campaign finance law, and new communication technology.

It also matters for the bigger Unit 5 picture of parties as **linkage institutions**. If nominating candidates is one of the core jobs parties do to connect voters to government, then losing control of nominations is a real change in how American democracy channels participation. That's exactly the kind of cause-and-effect reasoning [AP Gov](/ap-gov "fv-autolink") questions reward.

## Connections

### [McGovern-Fraser Commission (Unit 5)](/ap-gov/key-terms/mcgovern-fraser-commission)

This is the single most important link. After the chaotic 1968 Democratic convention, the McGovern-Fraser reforms made primaries and caucuses the main path to the nomination. That's the specific mechanism behind the CED's claim that parties' nominating role weakened.

### Critical elections and political realignments (Unit 5)

The CED lists critical elections as one of the forces shaping party structure. A realignment shuffles which voters belong to which party coalition, and parties respond by adapting their messaging and the kinds of candidates they nominate.

### [Candidate-centered campaigns (Unit 5)](/ap-gov/key-terms/candidate-centered-campaigns)

Weakened nominations and candidate-centered campaigns are two sides of the same coin. When voters choose nominees in primaries, candidates win by selling themselves, not the party, so personal brand and personal fundraising replace [party loyalty](/ap-gov/key-terms/party-loyalty "fv-autolink") as the path to office.

### Campaign finance law (Unit 5)

The CED names campaign finance law as another influence on party structure. When candidates can raise money independently through PACs and individual donors, they don't need the party's blessing or its bank account, which further loosens the party's grip on nominations.

## On the AP Exam

Expect this concept in multiple-choice questions about Topic 5.4, usually framed as "which of the following explains how parties have adapted" or asking you to identify a consequence of the shift to primaries. The classic correct answer pattern is some version of "party leaders have less control over who gets nominated; voters have more."

No released FRQ has used the phrase "party nomination of candidates" verbatim, but the concept fits the Concept Application FRQ perfectly. A prompt might describe a candidate winning a primary against the wishes of party leadership and ask you to explain how that scenario reflects changes in political parties. To score, you need to do more than define nomination. You have to explain the *change*: party insiders used to pick nominees, primaries gave that power to voters, and campaigns became candidate-centered as a result.

## party nomination of candidates vs Primary elections

Nomination is the outcome; a primary is one method of getting there. The party nomination is the party's official selection of its general-election candidate. A primary election is the modern process most parties use to make that selection, where voters cast ballots instead of party leaders deciding. The AP-relevant twist is that adopting primaries is exactly *why* the party's own role in nominations weakened. The party still hands out the nomination, but voters now control who gets it.

## Key Takeaways

- Party nomination of candidates is the process by which a party chooses who will run under its label in the general election.
- The CED's core claim (5.4.A) is that the parties' role in nominating candidates has weakened over time.
- The McGovern-Fraser Commission reforms shifted nominations from party leaders to voters through primaries and caucuses.
- Weakened party control over nominations led to candidate-centered campaigns, where the candidate's personal image matters more than the party label.
- Campaign finance law and new communication technology also reshaped how parties operate, since candidates can raise money and reach voters without party help.
- Parties adapt rather than disappear; they now focus on supporting candidates, building demographic coalitions, and using voter data.

## FAQs

### What is party nomination of candidates in AP Gov?

It's the process by which a political party selects the candidate who will represent it in the general election. In [Topic 5.4](/ap-gov/unit-5/how-why-political-parties-change/study-guide/T4gSvHQoZ3eRDUm4BYBt "fv-autolink"), the key exam point is that this party power has weakened as primaries gave the choice to voters instead of party leaders.

### Why has the parties' role in nominating candidates weakened?

Mainly because of the shift to primaries and caucuses after the McGovern-Fraser Commission reforms (post-1968), which moved the decision from party insiders to voters. Candidate-centered campaigns and independent fundraising under modern campaign finance law accelerated the trend.

### Do political parties still nominate candidates today?

Yes. Parties still formally award the nomination, and the winner runs under the party label. What changed is who decides: voters in primaries now effectively choose the nominee, so parties support candidates more than they select them.

### How is a party nomination different from a primary election?

The nomination is the result; the primary is the process. A primary is the election voters use to decide who wins the party's nomination, replacing the old system where party leaders chose nominees at conventions.

### Did weakened nominations make political parties irrelevant?

No. The CED frames this as adaptation, not decline. Parties still organize campaigns, build demographic coalitions, raise money, and use voter data and communication technology, even though they no longer control who gets nominated.

## Related Study Guides

- [5.4 How and Why Political Parties Change](/ap-gov/unit-5/how-why-political-parties-change/study-guide/T4gSvHQoZ3eRDUm4BYBt)

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