The party congress consists of delegates who are elected by regional branches, and the party chairman has no say over the nomination of candidates, who are chosen democratically in party primary contests. However, this system of party governance suffers from too much democracy. Because the party leadership has no say in the nomination of candidates for parliament, the party winds up with a weaker slate of candidates than it would have otherwise. Most participants acknowledged the need for some kind of balance between control and professionalism on the one hand and openness and mass participation on the other. If professionalism and central direction are lost, parties become too diffuse and can lose their institutional coherence and electoral competitiveness.
Indirect election can blend the principles of democracy and professionalism.
In Poland, for example, delegates to the party congress are chosen through indirect election, which gives more influence to regular party leaders while still allowing democratic input. In many parties members of parliament are automatically selected as delegates to the party congress. There is also a tension between internal fairness and the party s competitiveness in a general election. The principal objective of a political party is to win political power. A party chooses a candidate who can mobilize the enthusiasm of the public, while an individual who has risen from the grassroots and labored with dedication may be bypassed because he is not likely to inspire broad support.