At one time communities were small enough for people to actually know each other (and for the selection of candidates to be more natural)...
I suspect any real reform of our candidate selection process will involve empowering the most direct/local contacts to draft and/or support "good" candidates (and to screen out "bad" candidates).
I suspect community is the key to election reform generally and candidate selection specifically. However, it may be virtual community (which reflects people we associate with by choice rather than by proximity)...