while for our purposes it is unnecessary to trace the fall of the political bosses from "kingmaker" to "stumblebum," it is important to realize that citizens feel little allegiance to political parties. Each year since the mid-1960s, the results of the however, the principle that the vast majority (82 percent) of delegates would be determined by primary and caucus voters. in 2008, what was particularly interesting was not only the influence of primary and caucus voters but also the fact that state exit surveys revealed that the democratic party gained a 7 percent lead over the republican party in terms of voter party identification. the result is that the change in rules and the proliferation of primaries have weakened political parties, the traditional vehicle for building coalitions and forging consensus. in the past, candidates had to work their way up through party ranks and appeal to party bosses, but, since 1960, successful candidates at all levels have often ignored the party regulars, built their own organizations, and taken their campaigns directly to the people. as presidential chronicler and political journalist theodore H. white reflected, "the old bosses are long gone and with them the old parties. in their place has grown a new breed of young professionals whose working skills in the new politics would make the old boys look like stumblebums