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Hey guys, it’s Sarah.
Tomorrow’s the day. My first book, How to Eat an Elephant: One Voter at a Time, is officially coming out. And I’m so excited to share it with the world.
First and foremost: Thank you to everyone in The Bulwark community who made this possible.
As I say in the book, I wrote this for you guys—all the people who come up to us at live shows, asking how they can get involved, what they can do to help. Truly you helped get us here.
Second: If you haven’t already, please order your copy today.
Like, right now.
Unfortunately, the number-one New York Times bestseller right now is a biography of Clarence Thomas written by Ted Cruz. Guys—we need to knock them out of the number-one spot. There would be no greater joy to me than dethroning two of the people responsible for America’s authoritarian moment. (And if you’ve already ordered your copy, thank you so much.)
I’m going to be honest, trying to write a book while running a growing media company was a daunting prospect. Tim told me not to, and JVL walked me through all the headaches of getting it to print. I did it anyway. Because I think the Republican Party is uniquely vulnerable over the next three years and I want the pro-democracy coalition to capitalize on the opportunity to crush the MAGA movement and salt the earth with its ashes. Listening to American voters for eight years has taught me a lot about how we can do that.
As I talk about in the book, I was genuinely shocked by Donald Trump’s victory in 2016. I started hosting focus groups to understand how Republican voters could have made such a catastrophic decision. What I learned over the course of the past decade was that I—like so many others in DC—had become totally disconnected from the id of the GOP base.
Hundreds of focus groups and thousands of voters later, I lay out in the book a game plan for how Democrats can beat back the MAGA authoritarian threat, and build a durable pro-democracy coalition that can win in 2026 and beyond. Not by poll-testing their way to a sterile, inoffensive message—but by dominating the communications landscape, building new messaging infrastructure, and treating voters like adults.
This book is equal parts memoir, communications playbook, and cri de cœur. I cover my early years coming up in Republican politics in the aughts, leaving all that behind to start The Bulwark, the things voters have told me over and over again about their fears, frustrations, and hopes, what Dems can do to win these people back—and so much more.
If that sounds like your jam, then get your copy of the book today. And for those of you in NYC, Boston, LA, San Francisco, Seattle, Gambier, and Chicago—I’ll see you on the road real soon for the book tour. Let’s eat this elephant.
Sarah Longwell
Publisher, The Bulwark
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P.S. If you’ve already preordered the book and want a signed bookplate, fill out this form, today—supplies are limited. I’ve spent this summer signing these myself and want to get them into your hands. St. Martin’s Press will mail you a signed bookplate, free of charge. Note: if you are coming to one of my book talks and purchased a ticket+book combo, I’ve signed these copies. Thank you!
