United States Senator Joe Lieberman -- Al Gore's vice-presidential running mate in the Democrats' unsuccessful 2000 race for US president -- conceded defeat in the party primaries on Tuesday night.
This means the conservative Jewish Senator -- who does not campaign, drive or do very much in public on Saturday, the Jewish religious holiday -- won't be the Democratic candidate for November's Senate election from Connecticut.
Why did Lieberman, an otherwise popular Senator, lose the August 8 election?
Among all the Democratic Senators in the 100-member US Senate, he is seen as the one closest to President George W Bush, someone who has forefully and consistently supported America's war in Iraq. George and Joe are so close that Bush even delivered an affectionate kiss on Lieberman's cheek recently.
A year ago, Lieberman looked a shoo-in to win. No Democrat was willing to run against him. But backing Bush as well as the battle in Baghdad is the chalice of political poison this election year in the US. So a 52-year-old cable television millionaire named Ned Lamont stepped into the ring to fight Lieberman for the Democratic party's nomination.
Running tongue-in-cheek ads about his lack of political skills and distributing The Kiss buttons to highlight Lieberman's closeness to Bush, Lamont quickly became the campaign favourite.
On Tuesday night he won 52% of the vote, Lieberman's 48%.
Until recently Lamont was virtually unknown in the Democratic Party even in his home state, which is 1,000 square miles smaller than Lebanon, but his giant-killing reputation should add political lustre to his name. Connecticut is a Democratic state and Lamont is tipped to easily win the Senate election this November.
Unless Lieberman, who has declared that he will contest the Senate race as an independent candidate, pulls off an unexpected Election Night upset.
Photograph: William B Plowman/Getty Images
