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Former President Barack Obama reads from the first volume of his presidential memoirs offering a unique and deeply personal account of his campaign to get elected and some of the landmarks of his first term. Today he faces Republican John McCain in the final election. Which combination of states does he need to get those requisite 270 seats? His campaign takes him overseas to meet European leaders and to Afghanistan and Iraq where he considers a phased military withdrawal should he become President. Then McCain introduces his wild card in the form of Sarah Palin. What will happen on Election Day in November 2008?

Elected in 2008, Barack Obama became the 44th president of the United States and the first African American to sit in the Oval Office. A Promised Land explores both his personal reflections and the political highs and lows he encounters. From the grind of campaigning to the Inauguration, through the financial crisis and fight for the Affordable Care Act, to his place on the world stage, he also reveals the private moments of self-doubt. Threaded through it all there are tantalising glimpses of family life with Michelle, Malia and Sasha at one of the world’s most famous addresses.

Abridged by Katrin Williams.
Produced by Julian Wilkinson; the editor is Di Speirs.