Can the default instead of be changed?

5.x-2.0, Code, support request, normal, active

This has to be the best module for Drupal I've come across.
I am having trouble with only one thing.
On my search form, the dropdowns for the category fields display first with the next option being before the category items within (I have checked "Optional" within exposed filters fieldset on the views setup).
But if I want it to display differntly, do I essentially have to create a parent category for each then uncheck the "Optional" boxes in the Exposed Filters fieldset to be able to have the default value search all categories?