IAC’s Busch’s “The Comeback” Details National Election
Marking more than 30 years of insightful political analysis, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Professor and Institute of American Civics Associate Director Andrew E. Busch and co-author John J. Pitney Jr. offer a definitive account of the 2024 election in their newly released book, The Comeback (Bloomsbury, 2025).
“The election of 2024 was both highly unusual and, in the end, highly predictable. Americans were deeply unhappy, and the incumbent party lost—but in a new way and to an opponent who was nearly without parallel in a year filled with surprises,” Busch said. “The election already seems like forever ago, but the political and policy consequences have only begun to flow.”
From the nominating process to the ratification of the electoral college vote, the book revisits the campaigns and results through the short lens of politics today and the long lens of American political history. Busch and Pitney also examine Congressional and state elections.
“The Comeback marvelously highlights all the critical elements of the 2024 election. Incisive in its focus on personalities in historical context, elegantly written, with just the right balance of enviable dispassion and concern about civic health, this accessible volume is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand what made the 2024 campaigns and elections both predictable and let’s face it- weird,” said David Crocket, professor of political science at Trinity University. “In a time of uncertainty and seeming instability, Busch and Pitney have done it again, providing a roadmap to understand where we’ve been, how we got here, and where we might be headed.”
Busch has delivered comprehensive accounts of national elections since 1992 election, co-authored with James W. Ceaser from 1992-2016 and with Pitney from 2008-2024. Busch’s teaching and research focus on American political institutions, elections, and public policy. He has previously taught at the University of Denver and Claremont McKenna College. Busch has authored, co-authored, or edited two dozen books, including Ronald Reagan and the Firing of the Air Traffic Controllers (University Press of Kansas, 2024) and The Elephant in the Room: Donald Trump and the Future of the Republican Party (Rowman & Littlefield, 2022).
About the Institute of American Civics
The Institute of American Civics, housed within the Howard H. Baker School of Public Policy and Public Affairs at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, is dedicated to advancing civic knowledge, constitutional understanding, and civil discourse. Established to serve as a hub for scholarship, public education, and community engagement, the Institute promotes the values and principles at the heart of American democracy. The Institute seeks to cultivate informed and engaged citizens through a dynamic blend of academic programming, public events, and outreach initiatives. Visit civics.utk.edu for more information.