Plot Synopsis

Rich kid Payton Hobart has always known he's going to be president. But first he has to navigate the most treacherous political landscape of all: high school. So after a charismatic candidate joins the race for student body president, Payton searches for a running mate who will make him seem more authentic. Amid escalating concerns about his vice presidential pick, Payton gets plunged into a family crisis that stokes long-seething resentments. While Payton plays hardball with Harvard admissions, shocking betrayals and a scandalous videotape take the election to a new level of ruthlessness. With the election just days away, Payton faces tough questions about just how far he's willing to go to defeat his opponent, and then he makes an eleventh-hour push to lock down the school's undecided voters, including one student who has other things on his mind besides politics. As Payton confronts hard truths about his ambition following an election day bombshell, he reconnects with a former ally -- and becomes a target. Netflix released eight episodes of THE POLITICIAN on Friday, September 27, 2019 at 3:01am ET/12:01am PT.
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THE POLITICIAN returned for its seven-episode second season on Friday, June 19, 2020 at 3:01am ET/12:01am PT, as Netflix released the entire new season. Payton fights to unseat Dede Standish in the New York State Senate race. As a long-time incumbent and greatly admired Senate Majority Leader with no-nonsense Chief of Staff, Hadassah Gold at her side, Dede's re-election was supposed to be easy, but Payton - who sees this as the next step on his path to the Presidency -- must decide what kind of politician he ultimately wants to be in order to succeed, even if that means exposing secrets, lies, and a throuple. Meanwhile, his mother, Georgina Hobart, makes a momentous decision that threatens to upstage him and everything he's hoping to accomplish. But if Payton wants to rise above petty politics and succeed without compromising his character, he must find his voice and strengthen his political message to inspire and excite the voters.