happy warrior

One who remains stalwart and undiscouraged in the face of adversity. The phrase is often applied to politicians who are nominated for higher offices but ultimately are not elected. The other party's candidate is so strong that we need to nominate a happy warrior who can gracefully shoulder the disappointments we may face. Thankfully, the losing candidate was a happy warrior and not a sore loser. Anyone in the political world for 30 years must be something of a happy warrior, huh? It's not like you're going to win every election.