YesI wouldn't call that entirely surprising I mean Al Gore was pretty unpopular by the end of his term I mean the Invasion of Afghanistan against the Taliban that was done in reaction to the Second Bombing of the world Trade Centre was really costly and achieved little. The Democrats were doomed to loose Congress in the 2002 Midterm Elections and did so by enormous margins. That Republican surge really helped Mccain.After the thrashing that Gore gave McCain in 2000? it was definitely surprising, even more so when McCain actually beat Lieberman.
What I find Ironic was that in 2004 Mccain would essentially criticize Al Gore and Joe Liberman as for making the wars costly yet Mccain's Presidency was essentially a Continuation of Al Gore's "War on Terror."