'The Politician' Season 2 Trailer: The Political Mudslinging Continues, And Bette Midler Is Joining In

The first season of Ryan Murphy's dramedy series The Politician followed the exploits of the ambitious Payton Hobart (Ben Platt) as he campaigned to become student body president in a Santa Barbara, California high school. It was full of satirical political back-stabbing and double-crossing, not to mention plenty of morally and ethically questionable decisions. The end of the first season paved the way for a college-aged Payton to take it to the next level by becoming a young candidate in the New York State Senate race, and it looks like that race is going to get dirty.

The Politician's second season picks up where the first season left off as Payton is in the thick of his campaign against Dede Standish (Judith Light), the Senate Majority Leader who now finds herself at the center of a scandal that leaves her vulnerable to defeat. But she has her loyal Chief of Staff, Hadassah Gold (Bette Midler), at her side, and they're not going to let this kid get the better of them. See how the political mudslinging begins in The Politician season 2 trailer below.

The Politician Season 2 Trailer

Payton Hobart is no stranger to political scandals, which is why he has no problem taking swipes at the incumbent New York State Senator Dede Standish and her controversial "throuple," a romantic relationship she has with two men. But the senator and her staff aren't afraid to get their hands dirty either, making for quite a heated and personal political race.

Also creating problems for Payton is the return of Lucy Boynton (Bohemian Rhapsody) as Astrid, who seems be pregnant with Payton's child. And things only get more complicated as Payton's girlfriend Alice (Julia Schlaepfer) appears to be pregnant as well, though it could all be a ruse to see if Astrid is just trying to ruin Payton's latest political endeavor. This show is like Veep if it were a soap opera and far less funny.

Gwyneth Paltrow appears to be getting even more to do this season as Payton's mother Georgina. A quick shot in the trailer shows her on stage for a gubernatorial debate, which will very likely make Payton feel like he's being overshadowed and will only add fuel to the fire of his ambitions.

After all is said and done this season, will we see Payton Hobart stepping up to enter a presidential race? That's where his ambitions have always lied, and it's the logical next step in his career. It likely depends on whether he can pull off a victory in the Senate race, so fans will have to see where he ends up at the end of this season first.

The second season of The Politician arrives on Netflix on June 19, 2020.

Payton Hobart (Ben Platt) fights to unseat Dede Standish (Judith Light) 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 (Bette Midler) 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 (Gwyneth Paltrow), 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.