In the US, states held by Republicans are shown in red. Whereas blue color is used to define democratic rule state. Beyond this, swing states, that is, where both Republican and Democratic dominance varies, are referred to as purple. Anyone with even a little knowledge of American politics knows this. But have you ever wondered why this is so?
The connection is from the year 2000
To know the story behind this, we will have to go into a little flashback. Presidential elections were being held in the year 2000. The contest was between Democrat Al Gore and Republican George W. Bush. The Bush versus Gore contest was not decided on election night. This tussle that lasted for weeks finally ended at the door of the Supreme Court. This was the time when the media found a simple but effective way to convey what was happening to the voters. After which this trend came into regular practice. Red colors were used for Republican ruled states, while blue colors were used for Democratic ruled states.
Red also starts with R, Republican also starts with R.
Smithsonian Magazine Archie Tse, senior graphics editor at The New York Times, gave the logic behind this: I just decided that red starts with ‘R’, Republican starts with ‘R’. There was not much discussion about this later. Paul Overberg, a database editor who works for USA Today, said the trend was already in place by the time his outlet made the call. “I did it because everyone else was already doing it at the time,” Overberg said. Gradually it became firmly established in the minds of people. Meanwhile, swing states that changed from red to blue were named as ‘violet states’ by the media. According to The Washington Post, it was Russert who first used the terms ‘red states’ and ‘blue states’ on TV a week before the 2000 election.
Is there any negative impact of this?
Some people believe that designating states as red and blue is further exacerbating the already existing division in America. According to CNN, Benjamin Gross, a professor of sociology and criminology at St. Bonaventure University in New York, noted in a research paper that readers may develop negative attitudes about their fellow Americans, as if ‘red states’ behaved like this. And the ‘blue states’ behave differently.
The latest electoral map based on #RealClearPolling
Michigan will be very close but even without the state Trump wins. Pennsylvania will decide the election. Arizona and Georgia are Red states barring any cheating. #TooBigToRig pic.twitter.com/faJvtU7pWh
— Eddie (@Eddies_X) October 10, 2024
