Group eats in mid-morning to avoid Republican (5)
I believe the answer is:
bunch
'group eats' is the definition.
'bunch' can be an answer for 'group' (I have seen 'Group of people ' mean 'bunch' so perhaps 'group' could also mean 'bunch'). I am not sure about the 'eats' bit.
I don't understand how the remainder of the clue works.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for bunch that I've seen before include "Group of people (informal)" , "Gang" , "Small number of flowers tied together" , "Grouping of a number of similar things" , "Small group of flowers or people" .)