One of the surprises in the scholarship of American politics is the rarity of a serious study of a single electoral race. Indeed, there are few case studies or monographs that permit students of campaign politics to follow an election contest from start to finish. No Holds Barred is one of them. Beginning with the historic retirement announcement by U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman, which resulted in an open senate seat in the state of Connecticut, Gary Rose tracks every facet of the tough and exceptionally hard-fought senatorial campaign that unfolded in Connecticut during election year 2012. The candidates who contested their party’s nomination, the party nominating conventions, primary elections, and the general election that pitted Congressman Christopher Murphy (Democrat) against the former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment Linda McMahon (Republican) are covered in extensive detail throughout this penetrating study. Murphy, regarded by election watchers as the “heir apparent” to Lieberman’s seat, unexpectedly found himself locked in an intense political struggle against a fearless candidate willing to use her private fortune to finance a highly sophisticated campaign. The result was a long, costly, and brutal fight for votes, clearly one of the most combative and bitterly fought elections in the history of Connecticut politics.

One of the foremost scholars of modern Connecticut politics, Gary Rose has authored an informative and objective volume that is rich in both description and analysis. Contributing to the depth of this comprehensive study is the author’s first-hand contact via personal interviews and lengthy pre- and post-election conversations with several of the senatorial candidates, key political operatives, as well as several state and local party organization leaders. Additionally, the author served as a moderator for the first major debate between the two leading Democratic candidates. Like a political anthropologist, Rose immersed himself in his subject matter from the early days of the campaign to the closing of the polls on election day. Rose’s detailed narrative and analysis of what was said and done, both onstage and behind the scenes, during this eventful time is at the core of his fascinating chronicle of an election that had both state and national significance.