@paul: search 'super delegates'
super delegates - Google Search
The USA is not a parliamentary system so there is no head of the party's ticket who becomes PM that is selected by the party.
The primaries are not a ''real'' election. They are a party nominating ''selection''. The parties can make their own rules more or less.
This sort of explains it
Quote:
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A "superdelegate" is a delegate to the Democratic National Convention or Republican National Convention that is seated automatically and chooses who they want to vote for. DNC superdelegates include distinguished party leaders and elected officials, including all Democratic members of the House and Senate and sitting Democratic governors. Other superdelegates are chosen during the primary season. Democratic superdelegates are free to support any candidate for the nomination. This contrasts with convention delegates that are selected based on the party primaries and caucuses in each U.S. state, in which voters choose among candidates for the party's presidential nomination.
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Superdelegate - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia => more detail
Our primaries in the USA are popularity contests designed to give the party supporters some voice in the selection process and not a real binding election.