After receiving gorgeous chess sets from a foreign leader, President Bartlet distributes them to key staffers, and engages both Toby and Sam in marathon chess matches. Meanwhile, he's playing a strategic game with the Chinese, who are threatening to escalate war games in the Taiwan Strait into actual war. During the conversations with his staffers, Bartlet makes amends with Toby and makes a startling prediction to Sam. Josh spends the night obsessing over every single vote in the tiny New Hampshire hamlet that votes at the stroke of midnight, sending Donna out into the cold night armed with a cellphone to try to lock up votes. Meanwhile, CJ and Charlie engage in an escalating series of juvenile pranks, but Charlie wins, leaving CJ wondering for how long he usually makes people his bitch.

Starring:

ROB LOWE as Sam Seaborn
STOCKARD CHANNING as First Lady Abigail Bartlet
DULÉ HILL as Charlie Young
ALLISON JANNEY as C.J. Cregg
JANEL MOLONEY as Donna Moss
RICHARD SCHIFF as Toby Ziegler
JOHN SPENCER as Leo McGarry
BRADLEY WHITFORD as Josh Lyman
and MARTIN SHEEN as President Josiah Bartlet