Calculate the probability of drawing a red card from a standard deck of playing cards (52 cards total). Show your work.

A standard deck of playing cards has 52 cards, which are divided into 4 suits: hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades. There are 13 cards in each suit.

The red cards are the hearts and diamonds suits, so there are a total of 13 + 13 = 26 red cards in the deck.

To calculate the probability of drawing a red card, we can use the formula:

Probability = (Number of favorable outcomes) / (Total number of possible outcomes)

In this case, the number of favorable outcomes is the number of red cards (26), and the total number of possible outcomes is the total number of cards in the deck (52).

So, the probability of drawing a red card is:

Probability = 26/52

Simplifying the fraction, we get:

Probability = 1/2 or 0.5

Therefore, the probability of drawing a red card from a standard deck of playing cards is 1/2 or 50%.