red wave

plural red waves

1. USgovernmentA surge of voters supporting the candidates of the Republican Party during an election (especially a midterm election), which results in the party making significant gains.

   Episodes like this may be one reason the red wave didn’t materialize, why Republicans failed to usher in a new dawn of prosperity for the multiracial working class that Republican leaders from Senator Ted Cruz to the House policy honcho Jim Banks say they want to champion.

   2022 November 10, Sohrab Ahmari, “Why the Red Wave Didn’t Materialize”, in The New York Times

   1 more example

   Republicans had hoped that a “red wave” in the midterm elections would allow them to flip dozens of House seats, giving them a much more comfortable majority. Instead, Republicans were barely about to flip the House, and Democrats may even be able to increase their Senate majority depending on the results of the Georgia runoff next month.

   2022 November 16, Joan E Greve, “Q&A: what does a split Congress mean for US politics?”, in The Guardian