| − | In the [[United States]], a '''red state''' is a state in which a simple majority has voted for the [[Republican Party|Republican]] candidate in a presidential [[election]]. The term comes from the news networks, which in the 2000 presidential election decided to agree on one color to represent the Republicans and one for the [[Democrat]]s in the states the parties won. In many countries, including Canada and the United Kingdom, red is the color of [[liberal]]s and blue is the color of conservatives, but liberals in the United States did not want to be red so they would not be associated with [[communism]]. | + | In the [[United States]], a '''red state''' is a state in which a simple majority has voted for the [[Republican Party|Republican]] candidate in a presidential [[election]]. The term comes from the news networks, which in the 2000 presidential election decided to agree on one color to represent the Republicans and one for the [[Democrat]]s in the states the parties won. |
| | + | The choice of red to represent the United States' major conservative-leaning party is a departure from the practice used in other countries (such as Canada and the United Kingdom), where red is the color of liberal-leaning parties (while blue is the color of conservative-leaning ones), but liberals in the United States did not want to be red so they would not be associated with [[communism]]. |