The architect of the Obama campaign reveals how it all happened—and why its lessons are not limited to politics.

David Plouffe led not only the effort that put Barack Obama in the White House, he also changed the face of politics forever and reenergized the idea of democracy itself. The Audacity to Win is his story of that groundbreaking achievement, taking readers inside the remarkable 2008 campaign.

For two years Plouffe worked side by side with Obama, charting the course of the campaign. His is the ultimate insider’s tale, revealing both the strategies that delivered Obama to office and how the candidate and campaign handled moments of great challenge and opportunity. Moving from the deliberations about whether to run at all, through the epic primary battle with Hillary Clinton and the general election against John McCain, Plouffe showcases the high-wire gamesmanship that fascinated pundits and the drama and intrigue that captivated a nation.

The Audacity to Win chronicles the arrival of a new moment in American life as digital technology and grassroots organization converge, and the exciting possibilities revealed by a campaign that in many ways functioned as a $1 billion start-up with laserlike focus and discipline. In this extraordinary book, Plouffe unfolds one of the most important political stories of our time, one whose lessons reach to the greatest heights of what we dream about for our country and ourselves.

Praise for The Audacity to Win

“A visceral sense of the campaign from an insider’s point of view. . . . Plouffe provides a detailed and revealing account of exactly how he and Mr. Obama’s chief strategist, David Axelrod, created and executed the blueprint that turned the junior senator from Illinois—this 'skinny guy from the South Side with a funny name,' as the candidate once described himself—into a formidable political force who redrew the electoral map and defeated the huge, clanking Clinton and G.O.P. machines.”
—Michiko Kakutani, New York Times

David Plouffe, author of The Audacity to Win, served as the campaign manager for Barack Obama’s primary and general election victories in 2008. Prior to running the Obama campaign, Plouffe served as a leading Democratic Party media consultant from 2001 to 2007, playing a key role in the election of U.S. senators, governors, mayors, and House members across the country.