Season 3: 2001–2002
Cast: Rob Lowe, Stockard Channing, Dulé Hill, Allison Janney, Janel Moloney, Richard Schiff, John Spencer, Bradley Whitford and Martin Sheen
The third season, which covers the administration's third and fourth years in office, starts off with Bartlet announcing his intention to run for reelection and is heavily devoted to the upcoming presidential election. Other prominent plotlines include Congressional investigations into whether Bartlet committed electoral fraud by concealing his MS, a death threat against C.J. and the ensuing relationship she develops with a Secret Service agent assigned to her, the Qumari defense minister Abdul Shareef plotting terrorist attacks against the US, and a troubling meeting between Toby and the President that leaves Bartlet with a bout of insomnia in "Night Five." The season finale, "Posse Comitatus" closes several of these storylines as Bartlet meets his opponent in the elections and reaffirms his commitment to beat him. The episode ends with the president finally deciding to order Shareef's assassination (a legally questionable act) and C.J.'s agent's murder, just after the man threatening C.J. was caught.
From a critical perspective, series creator Aaron Sorkin acknowledged in October 2002 that the terrorism-related plots designed to keep the series relevant after the real-life 9/11 attacks were awkward at times, saying "from week to week, you felt like you were writing the show handcuffed, a little bit. I didn't know how to write it anymore. It was a constant search for what I wasn't doing that used to make the show work. [...] Maybe there was a way to make it work; there probably was. I wasn't able to find it in twenty-two episodes." [1] Nonetheless, the show went on to win its third "Outstanding Drama" Emmy in a row.
伊万·麦克格雷格,查理·布尔曼
席琳·赛莱,Pablo Cobo,Darren Muselet,拉伊卡·哈扎纳维修斯,达米安·勃纳尔,杰罗姆·尼尔,瓦蕾丽·卡尔桑迪
伊恩·布利斯,马丁·萨克斯,汤姆·格林,本尼迪克·哈迪,达米安·加维,迈克尔·M·福斯特,亚历克斯·丹肯,索尼娅·苏瑞思
乔·曼特纳,帕姬·布鲁斯特,A·J·库克,伯克·弗洛伊德,Adriana Fricke,埃美·加西亚,扎克·吉尔福德,瑞安-詹姆斯·畑中,Dennis Mencia,埃迪·米尔斯,妮可·帕森特,Tyler Ham Pong,亚当·罗德里格兹,Josh Server,爱莎·泰勒,Eric Scott Alperin,Cortés Alexander,克斯汀·范奈丝
大卫·休里斯,布鲁·亨特,阿道·欧汉隆,Mary O'Driscoll,Gia Hunter,菲利普·P·基恩,乔·克洛塞克,菲奥娜·格拉斯科特,伊万娜·米利切维奇,保罗·雷德,艾丹·麦克阿德尔,Savonna Spracklin,奥伦·金兰,安东尼奥·阿克儿,Shashi Rami,Aisling Kearns,柯乔·卡马拉,多格雷·斯科特,休伊·欧格雷迪,考兰·伯恩
芳根京子,本田响矢,山本舞香,小关裕太,小宫璃央,户塚纯贵,生濑胜久,和久井映见,高桥努,绀野真昼,森宽和,咲妃美悠,小川彩