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From January 24 to June 6, 2000, voters of theDemocratic Party chose its nominee forpresident in the2000 United States presidential election. IncumbentVice PresidentAl Gore was selected as the nominee through a series ofprimary elections andcaucuses culminating in the2000 Democratic National Convention held from August 14 to 17, 2000, inLos Angeles,California, but he went on to lose the Electoral College in the general election against GovernorGeorge W. Bush held on November 7 of that year, despite winning the popular vote by 0.5%.
The apparent front runner, incumbentVice PresidentAl Gore ofTennessee, only faced one major candidate in the primaries, former U.S. senatorBill Bradley ofNew Jersey. Both men campaigned to succeed term-limited incumbentBill Clinton. During the course of the five-month primary season, Gore won every primary contest over his opponent, and easily won the party's nomination for the2000 election.
Serious early speculation surrounded Bill Bradley, a former U.S. senator andNBA player, who had long been considered a potential Democratic contender for the presidency. In December 1998, Bradley formed a presidential exploratory committee and began organizing acampaign.[1] Gore, however, had been considered the favorite for the Democratic nomination as early as 1997, with the commencement of President Clinton's second term.[2] Though numerous candidates for the Democratic nomination tested the waters, including SenatorJohn Kerry, GovernorHoward Dean,[3] RepresentativeRichard Gephardt, and ReverendJesse Jackson,[4] only Gore and Bradley ultimately entered the contest.
Bradley campaigned as the liberal alternative to Gore, taking positions to the left of him on issues like universal health care, gun control, andcampaign finance reform.On the issue of taxes, Bradley trumpeted his sponsorship of the Tax Reform Act of 1986, which had significantly cut tax rates while abolishing dozens of loopholes.[5] He voiced his belief that the best possible tax code would be one with low rates and no loopholes, but he refused to rule out the idea of raising taxes to pay for his health care program.
On public education, Bradley pushed for increased federal funding for schools under Title I, as well as the expansion of the Head Start program.[6] He further promised to bring 60,000 new teachers into the education system annually by offering college scholarships to anyone who agreed to become a teacher after graduating.[7] Bradley also madechild poverty a significant issue in his campaign. Having voted against the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act, better known as the "Welfare Reform Act," which, he said, would result in even higher poverty levels,[5] he promised to repeal it as president. He also promised to address the minimum wage, expand theEarned Income Tax Credit, allow single parents on welfare to keep their child support payments, make the Dependent Care Tax Credit refundable, build support homes for pregnant teenagers, enroll 400,000 more children in Head Start, and increase the availability of food stamps.[7]
Although both Gore and Bradley showed comparable success in terms of fund-raising, Bradley lagged behind Gore in many polls from the start and never gained a competitive position. Despite the late endorsement of theDes Moines Register,[8] Bradley went on to be defeated in the Iowa Caucus; Gore garnered 62.9% of the votes, while Bradley received only 36.6%.[9] Gore won the primary competition in New Hampshire as well, though by a significantly smaller margin, receiving 49.7% to Bradley's 46.6%. On Super Tuesday, Bradley attracted some support in various primaries, especially in northeastern states, but he failed to gain the majority of delegates in any of these competitions. He withdrew from the race on March 9.[10]
Since the advent of the modern presidential primary system began in 1972, Gore remains the only non-incumbent (Republican or Democrat) to sweep all the nominating contests held in a given year.
| Candidate | Most recent office | Home state | Campaign Withdrawal date | Popular vote | Contests won | Running mate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Al Gore | Vice President of the United States (1993–2001) |  Tennessee |  (Campaign) | 10,885,814 (75.4%) | 56 | Joe Lieberman | .jpg) | |
| Candidate | Most recent office | Home state | Campaign | Popular vote | Contests won | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bill Bradley | .jpg) | U.S. Senator fromNew Jersey (1979–1997) |  New Jersey |  (Campaign) Withdrew: March 9, 2000 | 3,027,912 (21.0%) | 0 | |
| Lyndon LaRouche | .jpg) | Founder of theLaRouche Movement |  New Hampshire | (Campaign) | 276,075 (1.19%) | 0 | |
![Ann Richards, former Governor of Texas[citation needed]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aAnn_Richards%2c_Governor_of_Texas_02.jpg)
![John Kerry, U.S. Senator from Massachusetts[11]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aJohn_Kerry_portrait_of_Climate_Envoy_(cropped)_1.jpg)
![Paul Wellstone, U.S. Senator from Minnesota[12]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aPaul_Wellstone_(cropped).jpg)
![Bob Kerrey, U.S. Senator from Nebraska[13]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aSenator_Bob_Kerrey.jpg)
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![Dick Gephardt, House Minority Leader[14]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aDick_Gephardt_portrait_(full).png)
![Jesse Jackson, Civil Rights Activist, 1984 and 1988 Presidential Candidate[4]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aJesse_Jackson%2c_half-length_portrait_of_Jackson_seated_at_a_table%2c_July_1%2c_1983_edit.jpg)
![Warren Beatty, Actor[15][16]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWarren_Beatty.jpg)
![Ted Turner, Media Mogul[17]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aTed_Turner_(48591893656).jpg)
| Source[18][19] | Date | Al Gore | Bill Bradley | Jesse Jackson | Dick Gephardt | John Kerry | Bob Kerrey | Paul Wellstone |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gallup | Sep. 6–7, 1997 | 49% | 13% | 15% | 7% | 5% | 4% | 0% |
| Gallup | May 8–10, 1998 | 51% | 8% | 12% | 7% | 2% | 3% | 1% |
| Gallup | Oct. 23–25, 1998 | 41% | 15% | 11% | 14% | 4% | 4% | 1% |
| Gallup | Jan. 8–10, 1999 | 47% | 12% | 11% | 13% | 5% | - | 1% |
| Gallup | Mar. 12–14, 1999 | 58% | 21% | 15% | - | - | - | - |
| Gallup | Apr. 13–14, 1999 | 54% | 34% | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gallup | Apr. 30 – May 2, 1999 | 66% | 23% | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gallup | May 23–24, 1999 | 59% | 30% | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gallup | Jun. 4–5, 1999 | 63% | 28% | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gallup | Jun. 25–27, 1999 | 64% | 28% | - | - | - | - | - |
| CBS News | August 4, 1999 | 51% | 21% | |||||
| Gallup | Aug. 16–18, 1999 | 58% | 31% | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gallup | Sep. 10–14, 1999 | 63% | 30% | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gallup | Oct. 8–10, 1999 | 51% | 39% | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gallup | Oct. 21–24, 1999 | 57% | 32% | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gallup | Nov. 4–7, 1999 | 58% | 33% | - | - | - | - | - |
| Date | Pledged delegates | Contest | Bill Bradley | Al Gore | Lyndon LaRouche |
| January 24 | 47 | Iowa caucuses | 36.60% (18) | 62.85% (29) | 0.00% |
| February 1 | 22 | New Hampshire primary | 45.59% (9) | 49.73% (13) | 0.08% |
| February 5 | 0 | Delaware primary | 40.18% | 57.24% | 2.59% |
| February 29 | 0 | Washington primary | 34.21% | 65.25% | 0.54% |
| March 7 (1,310) | 6 | American Samoa caucuses | ?% (1) | ?% (3) | 3.03% |
| 367 | California primary | 18.19% (62) | 81.21% (305) | 0.60% | |
| 54 | Connecticut primary | 41.37% (24) | 55.60% (30) | 3.03% | |
| 77 | Georgia primary | 16.18% (12) | 83.82% (65) | - | |
| 20 | Hawaii caucuses | ?% (2) | ?% (20) | ?% | |
| 18 | Idaho caucuses | ?% (4) | ?% (14) | ?% | |
| 23 | Maine primary | 41.26% (10) | 54.02% (13) | 0.32% | |
| 68 | Maryland primary | 28.45% (19) | 67.32% (49) | 0.89% | |
| 93 | Massachusetts primary | 37.17% (35) | 59.77% (58) | 0.37% | |
| 75 | Missouri primary | 33.56% (24) | 64.62% (51) | 0.34% | |
| 243 | New York primary | 326,417 33.46% | 639,417 65.62% | 0.92% | |
| 14 | North Dakota caucuses | ?% (2) | ?% (12) | ?% | |
| 146 | Ohio primary | 24.70% (37) | 73.61% (109) | 1.69% | |
| 22 | Rhode Island primary | 40.35% (9) | 56.92% (13) | 0.42% | |
| 15 | Vermont primary | 43.89% (6) | 54.33% (9) | 0.72% | |
| 75 | Washington caucuses | 28.20% (22) | 68.39% (53) | 0.54% | |
| March 9 | 43 | South Carolina caucuses | 1.78% | 91.79% (43) | 0.0% |
| March 10 (75) | 51 | Colorado primary | 23.29% (7) | 71.43% (44) | 0.93% |
| 24 | Utah primary | 20.14% (3) | 79.86% (21) | - | |
| March 11 (250) | 47 | Arizona primary | 18.88% (7) | 77.89% (40) | 1.66% |
| 129 | Michigan caucuses | 16.27% (9) | 82.74% (120) | 0.99% | |
| 74 | Minnesota caucuses | ~12% (2) | ~74% (72) | 11.0% | |
| March 12 | 20 | Nevada caucuses | 2.22% | 88.91% (20) | 0.0% |
| March 14 (566) | 161 | Florida primary | 18.17% (17) | 81.83% (144) | - |
| 61 | Louisiana primary | 19.92% (7) | 72.96% (54) | 3.89% | |
| 37 | Mississippi primary | 8.60% | 89.62% (37) | 1.78% | |
| 45 | Oklahoma primary | 25.44% (7) | 68.71% (38) | 5.85% | |
| 68 | Tennessee primary | 5.26% | 92.13% (68) | 0.48% | |
| 194 | Texas primary | 16.34% (12) | 80.24% (182) | 3.42% | |
| March 18 | 3 | Guam caucuses | ?% | ?% (3) | 1.41% |
| March 21 | 161 | Illinois primary | 14.24% (12) | 84.35% (149) | 1.41% |
| March 25 | 13 | Wyoming caucuses | 4.98% | 85.44% (13) | 7.28% |
| March 27 | 15 | Delaware caucuses | ?% | ?% (15) | ?% |
| April 1 | 51 | Virgin Islands caucuses | ?% | ?% (3) | ?% |
| April 2 | 51 | Puerto Rico caucuses | ?% | ?% (51) | ?% |
| April 4 (238) | 161 | Pennsylvania primary | 20.73% (21) | 74.20% (139) | 4.53% |
| 77 | Wisconsin primary | 8.77% | 88.55% (77) | 1.01% | |
| April 15 | 79 | Virginia caucuses | ?% | ?% (79) | ?% |
| April 22 | 13 | Alaska caucuses | ?% | 68.39% (13) | ?% |
| May 2 (175) | 17 | Washington, D.C. primary | - | 95.90% (17) | 4.10% |
| 72 | Indiana primary | 21.95% (10) | 74.91% (62) | 3.15% | |
| 86 | North Carolina primary | 18.31% (13) | 70% (73) | 2.11% | |
| May 9 (56) | 26 | Nebraska primary | 26.27% (5) | 69.38% (21) | 3.01% |
| 30 | West Virginia primary | 18.44% (3) | 72.01% (27) | 1.90% | |
| May 16 | 47 | Oregon primary | - | 84.86% (47) | 10.86% |
| May 23 (86) | 37 | Arkansas primary | - | 78.47% (37) | 21.53% (7) |
| 0 | Idaho primary | 17.4% | 75.73% | 8.24% | |
| 49 | Kentucky primary | 14.68% (3) | 71.26% (46) | 2.24% | |
| June 6 (217) | 54 | Alabama primary | - | 76.74% (54) | 5.58% |
| 17 | Montana primary | - | 77.87% (15) | - | |
| 105 | New Jersey primary | - | 94.89% (105) | 5.11% | |
| 26 | New Mexico primary | 20.57% (3) | 74.63% (23) | 2.32% | |
| 15 | South Dakota primary | - | ?% (15) | ?% |
| Al Gore | Bill Bradley | Lyndon LaRouche | Uncommitted | Others | |
| Popular Vote | 10,626,568 (75.80%) | 2,798,281 (19.96%) | 323,014 (2.30%) | 238,870 (1.70%) | 33,418 (0.24%) |
| Delegates | 3,007 (85.16%) | 522 (14.78%) | 7 (0.06%) | 2 | - |
Connecticut SenatorJoe Lieberman was nominated for vice president by voice vote. Lieberman became the firstJewish American ever to be chosen for this position by a major party. Other potential running-mates included:
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