During the 2000 election night coverage, television networks began to consistently use color-coded maps, marking states won by Republican George W. Bush in red and states won by Democrat Al Gore in blue. This marked a recent shift in American political visual symbolism concerning the association of colors with political parties.

Historically, both major U.S. political parties used the colors red, white, and blue in campaigns without specific ideological associations. In the 19th century, animals distinguished the parties, with Democrats adopting the donkey symbol, referencing Andrew Jackson's nickname. Republicans became associated with the elephant after cartoonist Thomas Nast depicted the party with the animal during the 1870s and 1880s.

Prior to the 2000 election, the Democratic party was more likely to be linked with the color red, a practice that connected to labor movements and mimicked the British Labour party's use of red. By the 1930s, Democrats used the color red as a nod to the working-class voter base during Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidency. Republicans historically leaned into the color blue, which evoked Union army uniforms and Abraham Lincoln.

In 2004, Illinois state senator Barack Obama attributed the division of the country into blue states and red states to political pundits during his speech at the Democratic National Convention. He stated, "We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes. All of us are defending the United States of America."

In 2010, Republicans launched the Redmap gerrymandering campaign, aiming to gain control over state legislatures. Redmap was an acronym for the 'redistricting majority project', designed in advance of post-census redistricting.