hold sway

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hold sway (third-person singular simple present holds sway, present participle holding sway, simple past and past participle held sway)

1. (idiomatic) Be pre-eminent; have the greatest influence (over someone or something); dominate.
   • 1913, Elizabeth Kimball Kendall, A Wayfarer in China

     Within Lololand, of course, no Chinese writ runs, no Chinese magistrate holds sway, and the people, more or less divided among themselves, are under the government of their tribal chiefs.