The Campaign

"Evan J. Mandery, research director on Ruth Messinger's doomed challenge to Mayor Rudy Giuliani, offers a behind-the-scenes look at political campaigns in the television era. A day-to-day account of the 1997 New York City mayoral race, The Campaign takes us from former mayor David Dinkins's contemplation of a comeback bid to Rudy Giuliani's historic election-day victory. The book takes us to the real battlegrounds of modern politics: polls, focus groups, and television editing studios. With Mandery as our guide, we watch firsthand as political consultants, modern mercenary generals, conceive of the ideal candidate and then attempt - through multimillion dollar advertising campaigns - to fit their client into that ideal, no matter how uncomfortably."--BOOK JACKET. "The stars of the story are memorable: Rudy Giuliani, popping his eyes and tweaking the truth; Al Sharpton, the colorful preacher and rising political force; and Ruth Messinger herself, torn between her populist political upbringing and the modern political world where money dominates over all other concerns."--BOOK JACKET.