WASHINGTON — Former Vice President Al Gore and his wife, Tipper, are separating after 40 years of marriage.

According to an e-mail circulated among the couple's associates today, the Gores said it was "a mutual and mutually supportive decision that we have made together following a process of long and careful consideration."

Gore and his wife are telling friends they "grew apart" after 40 years of marriage and there was no affair involved.

According to two longtime close associates and family friends, the Gores say they are separating amicably.

Their decision came after a "long process of careful consideration," said one of the associates.

They both spoke on condition of anonymity.

The associates said the Gores, over time, had carved out separate lives, with the former vice president on the road frequently.

One of the associates said: "Their lives had gotten more and more separated."