Campaign Managers Conference

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Capturing a "first draft of history" about presidential campaigns from those on the inside — campaign managers, senior strategists, and media and political observers — has been the focus of the Campaign for President: The Managers Look Back conference at the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School. The conference has been held every four years since 1972.

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Through a series of panels and round table discussions, participants explain — and sometimes defend — campaign strategies and tactics from the earliest primaries through Election Day. The proceedings provide a unique historical record of key decisions. Conference conversations are recorded digitally and also reproduced in publications that have been used as a primary source material for presidential biographies from Nixon to Obama.

Campaign for President: The Managers Look at 2020 took place on June 26, 2021. Details, including the audio recordings of the conference, are available here. 

For press inquiries related to the convening, please contact Setti Warren at setti_warren@hks.harvard.edu.