dark horse

     

A ark horse candidate is one who is nominated unexpectedly, without previously having been discussed or considered as a likely choice. Often a dark horse is selected as a compromise when other, more prominent candidates' factions cannot come to an agreement. This metaphoric expression originally alluded to an unknown horse winning a race and was so used in a novel by Benjamin Disraeli (The Young Duke, 1831).

Trivia about dark horse

  • Running for president as a relative unknown, Polk is considered the first of these swarthy animals
  • 2-word term for a long-shot candidate for nomination, like James Polk in 1844
  • A little-known, unexpectedly successful political candidate
  • Benjamin Disraeli wrote that this "which had never been thought of... rushed past the grandstand in sweeping triumph"

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