Smoke-filled back rooms. The phrase instantly conjures images in the minds of most Americans of everything that is wrong with politics. These anti-democratic gatherings of special interests and party leaders make decisions that limit the choices of the public on who represents them. Through the years, states have replaced these insider conclaves with open primaries and caucuses.

However, some party bigwigs haven't learned their lesson.

On Tuesday, voters rejected the notion that they should be shut out of right to select the best candidates by Republican and Democrat party bosses. The results should be a clear message to every self-styled partisan kingmaker.

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In upstate New York, in a solidly Republican congressional district, the GOP party bosses' handpicked nominee, state Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava, had fallen so far behind the two leading candidates that she suspended her campaign on Saturday. She finished a dismal third, with less than six percent of the total vote.

How did a GOP nominee end up so far out of touch with a Republican district? The answer lies in those smoke-filled back rooms. Due to an outdated state law, Scozzafava didn't need to win a primary to gain the party's backing. A number of party leaders got together and decided that she would be the one who would represent the Republicans in the special election.

These bosses decided that they should nominate a "pragmatic" candidate whom they thought would appeal across the political spectrum. Thus, they picked Scozzafava, whose pro-choice, pro-gay rights profile and history of supporting increased taxes and spending hardly fit the description of a traditional Republican nominee.

Immediately, conservatives howled. They had been shut out of the process, and they wanted to have their voice heard, despite that fact that having no primary meant that they could not field an opposition candidate. Instead of accepting their fate, they decided to act.

They convinced Doug Hoffman, a lifelong Republican, to run as the Conservative Party nominee. While he was not well-known and had limited support initially, that would change soon.

Principled conservative groups, led by The Club for Growth, rallied to Hoffman's aid. With an opportunity to vote for someone who shared their own values, conservatives fled Scozzafava in droves, until her campaign lost viability.

Ultimately, Scozzafava endorsed the Democratic candidate, handing the seat to that party for the first time in more than 100 years. However, a message was sent clearly to Republicans nationally: Support candidates with values that connect with base voters or perish.

Locally, the same dynamic took place in a special election in Concord, yet it was the Democratic Party that felt the sting of overreaching.

This summer, New Hampshire Democrats proudly trumpeted that they had convinced former Republican Rep. Jim MacKay to switch parties and seek a seat in a special election. They considered this a coup with a popular figure who would help to realign the thinking of how the state has changed politically.

In their zeal to show that a moderate like MacKay no longer felt comfortable within the Republican Party, Democratic leaders worked overtime to clear the primary field for him to ensure his clear sailing in a solidly Democratic district.

MacKay has a long career of public service at the local, state and federal levels, having served as Concord's mayor, a longtime influential state representative and longtime Army Reservist. His record of accomplishment would be nearly impossible for any opponent to match.

However, MacKay's time as a Republican legislator had placed him highly within party leadership, and he often cast key votes with conservatives on critical issues. This left him out of place among his new party, and without a primary challenger, Democrats would be left with no alternative with a record more consistent with their platform.

The Republican nominee, Lynne Blankenbeker, ran an aggressive, focused campaign highlighting her conservative principles, a message she honed in her own primary challenge against a moderate. Although it was a Democratic-leaning district, she knew the key was to get her vote out.

In the end, her enthusiasm led Republicans to come out and elect her, while liberals stayed home, avoiding MacKay.

These two races should be a warning to party leaders nationally. Both the Republican and Democrat brands are tarnished, and voters want ideas and principles from candidates, not a partisan seal of approval. That's why, now more than ever, everyone should hope for vigorous primaries, not stale party candidates or talking points.

Greg Moore, of Manchester, is a public relations consultant. He managed John Stephen's 2008 congressional campaign.