Reagan's Victory: The Presidential Election of 1980 and the Rise of the Right

Many have pointed to the Iran hostage crisis, others to galloping inflation. In reality, as Andrew Busch makes clear, Ronald Reagan’s defeat of President Jimmy Carter in 1980 was attributable to more than any one issue, no matter how galvanizing. It marked the growing ascendancy of conservative attitudes that had been brewing for two decades—and marked the clear end of the era of New Deal liberalism.

Busch offers the first comprehensive study of this contest, going beyond journalistic accoun...