Editing Dick Gephardt (section)

===1988 presidential campaign===
[[File:Dickgephardt1988.gif|thumb|left|campaign logo]]
[[File:Democratic hopeful Richard Gephardt speaks to the audience - Tallahassee, Florida.jpg|thumb|left|Gephardt campaigning for president in [[Tallahassee]], 1987]]
Gephardt was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination in the [[1988 U.S. presidential election|1988 presidential election]]. He formally announced his candidacy in February 1987—one of the first to do so—and campaigned hard in Iowa, ultimately spending over 100 days in the state. He was stuck in low double digits in polls, but began moving ahead in [[Iowa]] in late December 1987 after running an ad that criticized trade barriers by Korea and Japan as unfair.{{citation needed|date=September 2024}} He won the [[Iowa caucus]]es and [[South Dakota]] primary in February while finishing a strong second in [[New Hampshire]], making him a serious contender for the nomination.<ref>{{Cite news|url = https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-03-02-mn-305-story.html|title = But It Is Called Oversimplified : 'Hyundai' TV Ad Boosts Gephardt|last = Risen|first = James|date = March 2, 1988|work = [[Los Angeles Times]]|author-link = James Risen}}</ref>

Gephardt's early victories did not translate into support in other states, though, and he was not able to raise adequate funds to compete in the Southern primaries. His campaign ran out of money after losing badly in the March "[[Super Tuesday]]" primaries, when he won only the Missouri primary. An ad aired by Governor [[Michael Dukakis]]'s campaign focused on Gephardt's "flip-flopping" voting record and showed a Gephardt look-alike doing forward and backward flips for the camera. Many felt the ad killed any chance Gephardt had of winning the nomination.{{citation needed|date=October 2019}} Gephardt dropped out after winning only 13% in Michigan, despite support from the [[United Auto Workers]]. Dukakis considered selecting Gephardt as his vice presidential running mate but instead chose [[Texas]] Senator [[Lloyd Bentsen]].