Entertainment

20 Political TV Shows To Stream If You're Already Missing 'Veep'
by Taylor Maple
Colleen Hayes/HBO

After seven long and hilarious seasons, Veep has officially ended, leaving a Meyer administration-shaped hole in all of our TV lineups. It'll be impossible to replace the show, especially since its cast was so iconic. Amy, Dan, Gary, Sue, Mike, Catherine, Marjorie, Kent, Ben, Jonah, Richard — the list truly goes on and on, and every single character had something special to offer Veep's story. In the wake of that brilliant series finale, it's still hard to accept that it's all over, but fortunately, there are plenty of political shows to watch after Veep if you're already missing the show.

Read more: Shows & Movies Like 'Bridgerton' To Watch After The Netflix Series

Of course, none of the below series can truly take Veep's place, and there are certainly some here with more straightforward, dramatic plots; most political shows tend toward the serious, and it's hard to match Veep's pitch-perfect satire. But if you can't get enough of incompetent government officials, international diplomacy crises, cheating scandals, or secret operations, there's definitely something here for you.

All of these are available to stream in some way, especially if you already subscribe to streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu. So, if you're already going through Veep withdrawals, consider adding these to your queue:

The Thick Of It

This British show is from none other than Armando Iannucci, aka Veep's creator. It's a satire of the British government, focused mainly on the fictional Department of Social Affairs and Citizenship.

Watch four seasons on Hulu.

The West Wing

The West Wing is essential viewing for anyone looking for political drama. When it comes to the inner workings of a president's office, it has everything. There's also still humor, as well as writer Aaron Sorkin's signature lightning fast dialogue.

Watch all seven seasons on Netflix.

The Newsroom

Another Sorkin project, The Newsroom is a commentary about how the news media handles political coverage. The show has its flaws, but its cast and short, three-season run make it worth a watch.

Watch all three seasons on Amazon Prime, HBO Now, or with a cable subscription, on HBO's site.

The Good Wife

Julianna Margulies stars as Alicia Florrick, a wife who's juggling her career, family, and her husband's career as Governor of Illinois. It's chock full of the scandal, cheating, and drama you want from a political series.

Watch all seven seasons on Amazon Prime, CBS All Access, or Hulu.

Mad Men

Mad Men isn't directly about politicians, but it does follow a number of 1960s ad agency execs managing their clients, the political climate, and business and personal scandals of their own.

Watch all seven seasons on Netflix.

Scandal

Kerry Washington is a stunner in this Shonda Rhimes series — Olivia Pope can handle anything. As a crisis management advisor in Washington D.C., Olivia finds herself in the center of plenty of public snafus, and also has an affair with the president — no big deal, right?

Watch all seven seasons on Netflix.

Parks & Recreation

This is admittedly much less dark than the other selections on this list, but we need a palette cleanser every once in a while! Parks and Rec offers a more wholesome view of the government through the eyes of the Pawnee, Indiana Parks Department, following its employees as they help to make the town a better place.

Watch all seven seasons on Amazon Prime, Netflix, or Hulu.

Madam Secretary

Téa Leoni stars as Elizabeth McCord, Secretary of State, who's just taken office. She's kind of an all-around badass: great at her job, and a mother and wife juggling things at home.

Watch four seasons on Netflix and newer episodes on CBS All Access.

Alpha House

Alpha House only ran for two seasons, but the Amazon original still has a 73 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and an all-star cast: John Goodman, Mark Consuelos, Wanda Sykes, Amy Sedaris, Haley Joel Osment are among the stars in this story of four GOP senators sharing the same house.

Watch both seasons on Amazon Prime.

Show Me A Hero

This miniseries, based on a nonfiction book of the same name, follows a young mayor (Oscar Isaac) who tries to remedy racial injustices in Yonkers and build low-income housing in white neighborhoods.

Watch the entire miniseries on HBO Now or HBOgo with your cable subscription.

Designated Survivor

Designated Survivor's high-stakes story follows Kiefer Sutherland as Tom Kirkman, a low-level Cabinet member who, after a horrifying attack on America, suddenly finds himself having to navigate a U.S. presidency.

Watch three seasons on Netflix.

The Wire

Widely hailed as one of the best shows of all time, The Wire dives deep into Baltimore's drug scene, the government officials ruling the city, and how the media influences all of it.

Watch all five seasons on Amazon Prime, HBO Now, or HBOgo with your cable subscription.

Homeland

Claire Danes plays Carrie Mathison, a CIA operative who is hell bent on thwarting terrorist attacks against the United States. The show still airs on Showtime, and will have you on the edge of your seat the entire time.

Watch seven seasons on Hulu or with your Showtime subscription.

The Crown

The Crown may be about a monarchy, but anyone who watches the show will tell you that Queen Elizabeth has to deal with politicking much more often than she would like.

Watch the first two seasons on Netflix.

The Man In The High Castle

This show explores a fictional alternate reality in which the Axis powers won World War II. America is nothing like we know it to be now, and Nazis are everywhere. It's an interesting take on U.S. politics, and it's easy to lose yourself in its sci-fi-esque premise.

Watch three seasons on Amazon Prime.

The Good Fight

A spinoff of The Good Wife, The Good Fight follows Christine Baranski's Diane Lockhart as she tries to manage her mayhem-filled law career, avoid scandal, and restore her family's reputation.

Watch on CBS All Access.

24

Another Kiefer Sutherland project, each of 24's episodes give counter-terrorist agent Jack Bauer 24 hours to defeat whoever his enemy of the day might be. It's full of twists and turns, and there's never a dull moment in Bauer's life.

Watch all nine seasons on Hulu.

The Americans

This spy thriller, set during the Cold War, follows two KGB officers posing as a regular old American husband-and-wife duo living outside Washington, D.C. When it aired its final episode last year, it was widely considered one of TV's best-ever series finales.

Watch all six seasons on Amazon Prime.

The Blacklist

The Blacklist is all about an ex-government operative turned fugitive turned government operative again. Red Reddington has agreed to work with the FBI to bring down their most wanted list of criminals, but as you might imagine, it's not an easy task, nor are his motives always clear.

Watch five seasons on Netflix and newer episodes on NBC's site.

These political TV shows won't completely ease the pain of Veep's departure, but they'll be a start. And who knows? Maybe you'll even find a new favorite to obsess over.