There have been contested conventions since then—situations that entail last-minute scrambles to secure a majority of delegates in the weeks leading up to the convention. This happened in 1976, when Gerald Ford barely put back a challenge from Ronald Reagan, and again in 1980, when Jimmy Carter was able to prevent Ted Kennedy from winning the nomination. But the last brokered conventions—in 1948 and 1952—took place in an utterly different world.

A brokered convention today would look very different, and the result would likely be much more destructive than anything observers can imagine. The first and most important problem is that there is no longer anyone to actually broker the convention. The entire notion of a brokered convention depends on strong party bosses who have the ability to negotiate and make deals over where votes should go. That system no longer exists. It was shattered by the democratic forces that produced the current method, which has been used since the 1970s and which places the power with voters in primary and caucus states.

Without a broker, there would be fierce debates over the rules of the convention, which are subject to change. Procedures such as “Rule 40,” which requires candidates to receive a majority of delegates from eight states, and those governing the superdelegates would each come into contention as different factions attempted to influence the outcome. While party officials currently still have sway through fundraising, endorsements, and organizational support, there is no coordinated group of brokers who would be able to maintain control of the convention floor. And, thanks to a 2015 Republican National Committee rule change, superdelegates in the Republican Party don’t have as much numerical or institutional power as they do in the Democratic Party. Superdelegates, too, are bound to vote for the candidates their states voted for, and—especially in this volatile environment—they do not have the clout to control many delegates, most of whom will still feel very loyal to their candidates.

Today, not only are there no adults in the room, but a contemporary brokered convention will be televised—and tweeted, Snapchatted, Instagrammed, live-streamed, you name it. In the past, brokered conventions occurred in a relatively closed world. Although radio had made its way onto the convention floor by 1924, there was still a great deal of insulation for the party bosses. That was still true as late as 1952, when television was just starting to enter American homes. But that world is gone. Now, every discussion, rumor, and negotiation quickly enter the public realm, making negotiated deals difficult to sustain since activists are rapidly informed of decisions they don’t find acceptable. The kind of chaos that Democrats saw in 1968 could be replicated for the Republicans if every attempt to reach a deal were undercut by Internet leaks.