Crossword Genius

Abandons Democrat over irritations (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

ditches

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'abandons' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'democrat over irritations' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'democrat' could be 'd' and 'd' is found within the answer.
The remaining letters 'itches' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for ditches that I've seen before include "Long narrow excavations" , "Trenches" , "lands in the sea" , "Rejects" , "Long narrow channels" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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