George W. Bush easily won re-election in 2004 due to immense popularity over the death of Usama Bin Ladin and the triumphs in Afghanistan and the United States being careful with Iraq. After 9/11, national unity was still continuing at record levels, along with President Bush's approval ratings. There were few challengers in the Democratic field who actually felt bold enough to challenge the president, still riding on a wave of popularity from the War on Terror. Howard Dean and John Kerry were the sole opposition, and Dean easily won the primary after Kerry pulled out after 3 weeks. Once Dean secured the nomination he chose New York Senator Hillary Clinton as his running mate, who would later go on to battle Condelisa Rice in the following election.