The Battle for America

The bestselling, truly gripping account of 2008's landmark election, updated through 2009

The election of 2008 shattered political barriers and ignited an extraordinary battle among some of the most formidable political rivals ever to seek the presidency. Now, Dan Balz and Haynes Johnson, two of America's most respected journalists, offer the first complete picture of the strategies-and singular personalities- that accompanied the candidates' first forays into Iowa and New Hampshire through Obama's historic victory on Election Night. Filled with insider details, this riveting, wholly nonpartisan account of the historic election will capture the attention of everyone who witnessed it, as well as future generations who wished they had. A Washington Post and L.A. Times Best Book of the Year."Dan Balz and Haynes Johnson ... capture the momentous contest in a polished account refreshingly free of last year's breathless sound bites, pundit insta-reaction or fixation on trifling gaffes ... an evenhanded and comprehensive account of the race...."
-Randy James, Time

"Makes for engaging reading - for both politics addicts interested in small new details and the more casual reader interested in a broad, savvy overview of the run-up to a historic election.
-Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

"Magisterial.... Captures the thrill of the campaign and its meaning. Balz and Johnson are the true heirs to Teddy White...."
-George Stephanopoulos, ABC's "This Week with George Stephanopoulos"Dan Balz is the chief correspondent at The Washington Post and its former national editor, political editor, White House correspondent, and Southwest correspondent. He is the coauthor of two books, the New York Times bestseller The Battle for America 2008 and Storming the Gates. He is a regular panelist on PBS's Washington Week and MSNBC's The Daily Rundown.

Haynes Johnson (1931–2013) was the author of several nonfiction works, including Divided We Fall: Gambling with History in the Nineties and The Age of Anxiety: McCarthyism to Terrorism. Additionally, Johnson was a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and served as an advisor to Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.