Following the Republicans’ losses this year there has been a lot
of inside the beltway talk about whether or not the party will
moderate its positions to try to appeal to a broader share of
the electorate. Ultimately, though, the decision rests mainly in
the hands of rank and file Republicans. They are the ones who
vote in primaries. That is how the people representing the party
are chosen and the it’s main way elected Republicans are
punished for disagreeing with the base.  As it currently stands,
regular Republicans have no desire to see the party moderate.
According to Pew Research, 60 percent of self-described
Republicans want to see the party’s leadership move in a more
conservative direction. From Pew:  As long as the rank and file
members don’t want their party to move to the center, it isn’t
going to moderate. While opinions could change going forward,
this recent loss was not enough to convince the Republican base
that their party needs to really change.