Graykeeper, For some reason I feel you have lived here for a long time. Don't know, just a hunch.   Remember back when the abbreviation for Alaska, when addressing mail, was "R.A."? It stood for "Russian America".  You can still find it on old envelopes.
Moving on: I don't know much about politics and their inner workings (my parents and grandparents taught me that ALL politicians are crooks who must be avoided and that everything they promise if elected is a complete lie since it seldom comes to fruition) but I am getting the impression a party divided is not a good thing. Not only does it strike me as silly and disorganized to elect someone and then try to force them to quit, but I am reminded of "united we stand, divided we fall."  I think they should let the voters decide who they want to elect and then stand by it. Other wise what's the point of the whole operation???
Just my humble opinion.