After announcing he would not run in the 2004 U.S. presidential election , Gore endorsed Vermont governor Howard Dean in December 2003 , weeks before the first primary of the election cycle . He was criticized for this endorsement by eight Democratic contenders particularly since he did not endorse his former running mate Joe Lieberman ( Gore preferred Dean over Lieberman because Lieberman supported the Iraq War and Gore did not ) . Dean 's campaign soon became a target of attacks and eventually failed , with Gore 's early endorsement being credited as a factor . In '' The New York Times '' , Dean stated : " I actually do think the endorsement of Al Gore began the decline . " The '' Times '' further noted that " Dean instantly amplified his statement to indicate that the endorsement from Mr. Gore , a powerhouse of the establishment , so threatened the other Democratic candidates that they began the attacks on his candidacy that helped derail it . " Dean 's former campaign manager , Joe Trippi , also stated that after Gore 's endorsement of Dean , " alarm bells went off in every newsroom in the country , in every other campaign in the country " , indicating that if something did not change , Dean would be the nominee . Later , in March 2004 , Gore endorsed John Kerry and gave Kerry $ 6 million in funds left over from his own unsuccessful 2000 bid . Gore also opened the 2004 Democratic National Convention
2004 Democratic National Convention
2004 Democratic National Convention
Al Gore