Designated Survivor Season 3 Recap

Designated Survivor Season 3 brought a new national security threat, this time amidst President Kirkman’s reelection campaign. After the show’s recent second cancellation, we’re recapping the season’s main storylines to close out and say goodbye (again) to the political drama.

Reelection at All Costs

President Kirkman ran for reelection as an independent, against the odds. He hired the savvy Lorraine Zimmer to be his campaign manager and named Aaron Shore as his running mate. Lorraine used illegal surveillance technology to spy on conservative opponent Cornelius Moss. When Emily discovered it and went to Kirkman right before the election, he uncharacteristically sat on the information to win. The FBI arrested Lorraine shortly after.

As a handsome Latino VP candidate, Aaron helped Kirkman take Texas, Moss’ home state. His relationship with Isabel Pardo was popular, but after he cheated on her with Emily, they still needed to play their parts. Isabel’s promotion to Deputy Chief of Staff helped her realize she deserved better.

RIP Hannah Wells

Designated Survivor Season 3 Episode 5 Recap

Season 3 saw the death of FBI-agent-turned-CIA-analyst Hannah Wells. Uncomfortable with a desk job, Hannah stumbled onto a plan to engineer a virus that would leave people of color sterile, effectively changing voting demographics in the long term. The virus engineer, Wouter Momberg, murdered Hannah, but authorities thwarted the plan. Moss’ biggest donor, Detwiler, financed the plan and his operative hired Momberg.

Emily’s Mother

Designated Survivor Season 3 Episode 9 Recap

Emily had stepped away from the White House to help her mother, Carrie, who was sick with cancer. At Carrie’s insistence, Emily went back to work and chose to join the campaign to keep an eye on Lorraine. However, Carrie visited Emily because assisted suicide was legal. Eventually, Emily mercifully helped Carrie end her life.

Prescription Addiction

Designated Survivor Season 3 Episode 8 Recap

Mars Harper, Kirkman’s Chief of Staff, was living with a wife, Lynn, addicted to painkillers. After a scare that sent her to the hospital and then to rehab, Mars focused on FlagKind, Detwiler’s pharmaceutical company that made the drug she was addicted to. After Detwiler went down, Mars convinced Lynn that she should run for her father’s congressional seat.

If you’ve missed a recap or want to revisit the entire Season 3 of Designated Survivor, check out our full list of recaps below.