After winning the primaries in 30 states against Jesse Jackson and Al Gore , Dukakis accepted the Democratic Party 's nomination at the 1988 Democratic National Convention on July 21 , 1988 , where Governor of Arkansas Bill Clinton formally nominated Dukakis . During the campaign , Dukakis was the target of several now-infamous attack ads by individuals supporting the Bush campaign , most infamously the " Willie Horton " ad produced by the pro-Bush National Security Political Action Committee . Although the Bush campaign disavowed the ad , it still played a major role in Dukakis ' defeat . The Dukakis campaign was mired in confusion during the general election , as exemplified by " the Handlers " , a series of unintentionally confusing commercials that the campaign produced and aired at a cost of $ 3 million . Dukakis also erred in not responding to the Horton attack until late in the campaign
1988 Democratic National Convention
1988 Democratic National Convention
Michael Dukakis 1988 presidential campaign