throw one's hat in the ring

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Idioms and Phrases

Also, toss one's hat in the ring . Announce one's candidacy or enter a contest, as in The governor was slow to throw his hat in the ring in the senatorial race . This term comes from boxing, where throwing a hat in the ring formerly indicated a challenge; today the idiom nearly always refers to political candidacy. [c. 1900]

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

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