"A Borzoi Book"--Title page verso.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 261-351) and index.

Introduction: Democracy under siege -- Part one: The hidden history. Enter Lenin -- The CIA in Italy -- The explosion -- The Stasi changes history -- The KGB targets America -- Democracy promotion -- From Yeltsin to Putin -- A new age -- Part two: 2016. Delaying offense -- Playing defense -- Election day -- Social media -- Inaction -- Conclusion: Breaking the siege.

Presents a judicious history of covert foreign interference in world elections since the Cold War that discusses Russia's role in America's 2016 presidential election and why the threat is greater than ever in 2020.

Russia's interference in 2016 marked only the latest chapter of a hidden and revelatory history. Shimer tells the story of covert electoral interference past and present. He exposes decades of secret operations--by the KGB, the CIA, and Vladimir Putin's Russia--to shape electoral outcomes. He also shows how, throughout history and in 2016, both Russian and American operations achieved their greatest success by influencing the way voters think, rather than tampering with actual vote tallies. Russia's central aim is to undermine and disrupt our democracy--harming both Democrats and Republicans--to the detriment of all Americans. -- adapted from jacket