American Presidential Election Campaigns 1789-2024 by Iain Dale (Signed) COMING 3 NOV 2026

Biteback
Hardback
3 November 2026

All copies personally signed by Iain Dale

Following the success of British General Election Campaigns 1830-2019. Iain Dale has now turned his attention to the 60 presidential elections since George Washington became America’s first president in 1789. 60 chapters on each of the 60 presidential election campaigns since 1789, each written by a different contributor from the world of politics, academia, journalism and history. It features chapters by top US campaign strategist Karl Rove, Emily Maitlis and Jon Sopel from the Newsagents podcast, Sarah Smith, the BBC’s North America editor, Sarah Smith, the Today Programme’s Justin Webb, and political journalists Tim Shipman, Adam Boulton and Simon Heffer.
Each of the chapters charts the progress of each campaign, examining the primary process in both parties, the party conventions, the choice of vice-presidential candidates, the debates and the general election campaign itself. Each chapter has a Fact Box, which contains all the statistical information about each election.
Iain Dale said: “This book brings to life each presidential campaign and its personalities. Each campaign has its own unique story and narrative. The book will appeal to the general reader and political geek alike and is an essential read for anyone who wants to broaden their understanding of American political history.

60 chapters on each of the 60 presidential election campaigns since 1789, each written by a different contributor from the world of politics, academia, journalism and history. Here are the elections, together with the name of the person who is writing about them...

1789 Washington v Adams Sir Brandon Lewis
1792 Washington v Adams Johnny Farrar-Bell
1796 Adams v Jefferson Nan Sloane
1800 Adams v Jefferson Roifield Brown
1804 Jefferson v Pinckney Michael Crick
1808 Madison v Pinckney Matthew Binkowski
1812 Madison v Dewitt Clinton Peter Snow
1816 Monroe v King Corey Froggatt
1820 Monroe v Noone Alex Noonan
1824 Adams v Jackson Mark Fox
1828 Jacksob v Adams Josh Provan
1832 Jackson v Clay Kelly Johnston
1836 van Buren v Harrison Graham Butler
1840 Harrison v van Buren David Walsh
1844 Polk v Clay Richard Gaunt
1848 Taylor v Cass Natasha Clark
1852 Pierce v Scorr Karin Robinson
1856 Buchanan v Fremont Adam Smith
1860 Lincoln v Douglas Tim Shipman
1864 Lincoln v McClellan Julia Langdon
1868 Grant v Seymour Nick Thomas-Symonds
1872 Grant v Greeley Richard Johnson
1876 Hayes v Tilden Poppy Trowbridge
1880 Garfield v Hancock Alex Puffette
1884 Cleveland v Blaine Connor Hand
1888 Harrison v Cleveland Robert O'Quinn
1892 Cleveland v Harrison George Simpson
1896 McKinley v Bryan Karl Rove
1900 McKinley v Bryan Sarah Stook
1904 Roosevelt v Parker Sue Cameron
1908 Taft v Bryan Gary Murphy
1912 Wilson v Taft v Roosevelt Robert Waller
1916 Wilson v Hughes Andrew Gawthorpe
1920 Harding v Cox Rosie Campbell
1924 Coolidge v Davis Sam Marks
1928 Hoover v Smith Michael McManus
1932 Roosevelt v Hoover Gerry Hassan
1936 Roosevelt v Landon Peter Kellner
1940 Roosevelt v Wilkie Sir Robert Buckland
1944 Roosevelt v Dewey Neil Stockley
1948 Truman v Dewey Layla Moran
1952 Eisenhower v Stevenson Tim Hames
1956 Eisenhower v Stevenson Allie Renison
1960 Kennedy v Nixon Alvin Felzenberg
1964 Johnson v Goldwater Edward Young
1968 Nixon v Humphrey./Wallace Simon Heffer
1972 Nixon v McGovern Philip Norton
1976 Carter v Ford Iain Dale
1980 Reagan v Carter Daniel Pitt
1984 Reagan v Mondale Michael Mullaney
1988 Bush v Dukakis Adam Boulton
1992 Cinton v Bush v Perot Sir Peter Riddell
1996 Clinton v Dole Luke Tryl
2000 Bush v Gore Toby Harnden
2004 Bush v Kerry Justin Webb
2008 Obama v McCain Donal Blaney
2012 Obama v Romney Colleen Graffy
2016 Trump v Clinton Emily Maitlis
2020 Biden v Trump Jon Sopel
2024 Biden v Trump Sarah Smith

Endorsements for American Presidential Election Campaigns

I lasted eleven days in the White House; Iain Dale's brilliant book explains the other 86,870. He has assembled sixty campaigns, from Washington's coronation to Trump's comeback, and every one proves American democracy has always been equal parts poetry, skulduggery and sheer chaos. Wise, gossipy and wildly entertaining. It took a Brit to explain our elections to us. Essential reading before 2028.
Anthony Scaramucci, Fmr White House Director of Communications

“Day by day it becomes clearer that in Britain, we are increasingly in the hands of the American political system. Yet most of us know little about it, beyond the odd presidential anecdote: this book is a brilliant primer on an entire political history that every interested person in Britain needs to understand.“
Andrew Marr, Broadcaster, LBC Radio

‘What a brilliant galere of writers Iain Dale has brought together to create this excellent book, which will be unvaluable both for historians and the general reader. The expertise and erudition shine from every page.’
Andrew Roberts, author: ‘Churchill: Walking with Destiny’

"Iain Dale has done it again! Enlisting an impressive array of historians, political journalists, and former government officials, AMERICAN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION CAMPAIGNS delivers an extraordinary collection of insights, with telling anecdotes, into how complicated and challenging it is to win the hardest job on the planet. No one can truly say they understand the United States without reading this book."
Mitchell Reiss, Former US Ambassador to Northern Ireland

“These chapters shine a light not just on elections, but on the broader political moments that shaped them. A must for anyone interested in the great democratic experiment of the United States.”
David Lammy, former Foreign Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister
"Iain Dale helms the definitive U.S. election compendium, from the first forging of America's democratic experiment all the way through to the clear-and-present danger the country's governing system currently faces. Across 60 presidential elections, you'll experience the country's formation, the threats posed by wars, pandemics and other global challenges, its territorial and industrial expansion, and the central characters who rose to the fore to write America's storied history. A must-read for anyone who wants to understand today's America and the portents for its future".
Simon Marks, LBC Washington Correspondent

“American Presidential Elections are the Greatest Democratic Show on Earth and this is a wonderful all-encompassing guide to these historic contests. Iain Dale has assembled a stunning array of writers who more than do justice to these momentous events"
Lord Michael Gove, Editor, The Spectator

“Every campaign professional likes to believe their race is unprecedented. Iain Dale's collection is a bracing corrective. Across sixty elections and sixty contributors, you watch the tools of the trade get invented, abandoned and reinvented — the front-porch campaign, the whistle-stop tour, the attack ad, the viral clip. The mix of British and American voices brings a perspective you won't find in the usual histories, and the data at the head of each chapter makes it as useful as it is readable. It belongs on the bookshelf of any serious politico.”
Shane Greer, Publisher, Campaigns & Elections, Washington DC

“There is no job in the world quite like the American presidency, and no shortage of men and women, living and long dead, who have deemed themselves fit to hold it. This vast and fascinating book vividly brings to life the extraordinary pressures candidates must withstand to enter this most exclusive club. What emerges are the recurring ingredients of a winning presidential campaign: ego, funding, preparation, stamina, energy, messaging, communication, counterpunching, technology, vision, competence, and, often, sheer luck.”
Daniel Forrester, US political commentator

“From high-stakes rallies and make-or-break debates to scandals and subterfuge, this is an exhilarating and definitive guide to the weird and wonderful world of American residential campaigns.”
Professor Brian Klaas, Professor of Global Politics at University College London

“For anyone with even a passing interest in American politics this book is a narrative masterpiece. With a scholar’s vigour and a novelist’s sense of drama these essays highlight the development of American democracy over more than two centuries. Riveting and well researched, they offer a factual history of each election with a nuanced interpretation and analysis of the ebbs and flows of each campaign. This book is a must read for any political junkie.”
Sir Simon Burns, former Conservative MP and expert on US politics