Crossword Genius

Challenged many a socialist (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

dared

'challenged' is the definition.
(daring is a kind of challenging)

'many a socialist' is the wordplay.
'many' becomes 'd' ().
'socialist' becomes 'red' (red is a kind of socialist).
'd'+'a'+'red'='DARED'

(Other definitions for dared that I've seen before include "Was brave enough" , "Had the nerve to" , "Took a risk" , "was bold enough" , "Goaded" .)

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