As an example, in my own state of Washington, the Republican party nominated Loren Culp:
Culp has been married for 43 years and has two grown children. He was raised in Jefferson County. He dropped out of high school and later got a GED.
He ran a construction business in the Olympia area for 20 years, then at the age of 49 decided he wanted to go into law enforcement. Culp attended the state police academy and was hired in Republic, a town of about 1,000 people located 300 miles east of Seattle.
He held various positions in the police department before rising to chief. But a series of budget cuts in Republic mean he is the only policeman in town.
Someone who dropped out of high school is a widely unusual candidate for Governor and it seems like the Republican party simply didn't bother getting someone with better credentials to participate in the primary. Is this a common occurrence in heavily Democrat/Republican states? While Culp's odds were certainly very low in this election, surely one could expect the Republican party to still try and find the best possible candidate for the job?