Why are Republicans red and Democrats blue?

During an election event at the Republican Party headquarters in Washington, DC, in 1984, a large map was propped up on the back wall. The map was covered with green cardboard for each state. When organizers tore off the cardboard, sparkling blue cloths emerged representing the 49 states that had declared for Republican candidate Ronald Reagan.

Around the world , blue is often associated with wealth and conservatism, as it is traditionally the most expensive color to produce. Meanwhile, red has long been associated with radicalism.

Like the blood of workers rebelling against oppression, the red features on the flag also symbolize left-leaning political organizations, from radical communists to the social democratic parties of Western Europe, Canada and Australia.

As a result, some of the earliest electoral maps, such as the 1883 Statistical Atlas of the United States, used a red-for-Democrat, blue-for-Republican scheme.

A TV screen airs the presidential debate at a bar in Washington, DC in 2020. Photo: GI

When color television networks came into being, the colors of the American flag became the dominant color scheme used by networks on election night.

In 1976, NBC released an electoral map lit by thousands of light bulbs. "We said blue for conservatives, because that's the parliamentary system in London, red for the more liberal party. That's it. That's all we did," explained Roy Wetzel, then NBC's general manager of elections.

However, since 1984, CBS has joined ABC in labeling Republicans as red and Democrats as blue. CNN also switched during the 1992 presidential election, and NBC followed suit in 1996.

It's possible that these networks are simply copying each other. Former NBC News executive vice president William Wheatley said in 2016 that his network decided to do the same "so as not to confuse viewers."

CNN's 1980 election night coverage showed the US map almost entirely turning blue as Republican candidate Ronald Reagan won by a landslide. Photo: CNN

In 1980, two influential publications decided to use red for former US President George W. Bush, a Republican. A graphics editor for the publication explained: "I used red simply because it starts with 'r' (red), and the Republican Party also starts with 'r' (Republican Party)."

"I'm convinced that in the national map that USA Today ran the day after the 2000 election, red was Republican and blue was Democratic," said Keating Holland, CNN's director of polling and election analysis from 1993 to 2014.

Since then, declaring a state, district, or individual voter as “red” or “blue” has become a useful way to frame American political discussions. Purple, a blend of blue and red, eventually became the color of bipartisan or swing states.

Ngoc Anh (according to CNN)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/bau-cu-my-2024-tai-sao-dang-cong-hoa-mau-do-va-dang-dan-chu-mau-xanh-post315672.html