Crossword Genius

Announced race led surprisingly by Democrat (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

declared

'announced' is the definition.
(similar in meaning)

'race led surprisingly by democrat' is the wordplay.
'surprisingly' is an anagram indicator (a surprising ordering of the letters).
'by' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'democrat' becomes 'd'.
'race'+'led'='raceled'
'raceled' with letters rearranged gives 'declare'.
'declare'+'d'='DECLARED'

(Other definitions for declared that I've seen before include "Closed an innings" , "Announced formally" , "Spoke or said dramatically" , "Announced, proclaimed" , "Avowed openly" .)

I've seen this clue in The Sun and The Guardian.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.