
Politics is an interesting topic to be adapted on screen and sometimes movies and shows bring forth such villainous politicians that audiences can unfortunately compare their villainy with real-life politicians. While some media depictions have been noble, many shrewd politicians on screen have embodied the worst aspects of politics and revealed the murky nature of the profession. Here are 19 such cunning and downright evil politicians.
1. Tywin Lannister, Game of Thrones

One of the most scheming politicians in the fantasy series, Lannister (played by Charles Dance) is downright evil and has no moral compass. Even though he is highly willful and has a strong intellect, which is good qualities, he uses these to disrupt Westeros and is one of the most feared characters.
2. Selina Meyer, Veep

Played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Meyer is an immensely corrupt politician who stops at nothing. She is one of the few female politicians in pop culture who is shown to be as brazen and ruthless as her male counterparts. Meyer stands for nothing and only cares about her advancement. Plus, she is abusive to others and has no ethics.
3. Clay Davis, The Wire

The cult show that reveals the dark and dirty reality of urban institutions, has amidst its characters an iconic politician who is a shining example of corruption. Played by Isiah Whitlock Jr., Davis is a stand-in for the decay of Government. While most other characters in the show are morally grey, Davis is purely selfish and a sadist. As the State Senator, he protects criminals and rigs elections.
4. Frank Underwood, House of Cards

Portrayed by the controversial actor Kevin Spacey, Underwood is one of the shrewdest politicians on screen. He is ethically bankrupt and does not have a shred of sympathy. Throughout the political thriller, he has murdered and slandered people to get to the highest chair in the country. One of his most famous acts of evil was killing a reporter he had an affair with. And as the series progresses, his acts get blacker and blacker.
5. Stephen Meyers, The Ides of March

This political movie highlights the fact that even the most morally upright person can get swept under the dirty rug of politics. Meyers (played by Ryan Gosling) is a campaign manager to Mike Morris (George Clooney), who is a corrupt presidential candidate in his own right. When Meyers gets fired from his job, he decides to leverage Morris by threatening to reveal the latter’s dirty secret about an affair. This is a film where everyone is morally bankrupt.
6. Merkin Muffley, Dr. Strangelove

Muffley, played by Peter Sellers, is a character who is shrewd not because he does anything evil but because he is so wrapped up in niceties and diplomatiques that he fails to match up to urgent situations. The comedy movie is about a rogue American general who drops a bomb on the Soviet Union and triggers a doomsday device. As the general’s chief, Muffley refuses to take a hard stand and is instead worried about his own image.
7. Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Comacho, Idiocracy

With such a comical name, Comacho (played by Terry Crews), takes home the prize for being the most ineffective politician in a movie. The comedy is about a future America where infrastructure has crumbled, people have devolved, and corporations run rampant amidst food shortages. Comacho is the President who rules with equal disorder over this disastrous mess with his ignorance. He fails to serve his nation and instead puts his responsibilities on other’s shoulders in a shrewd manner.
8. James Dale, Mars Attacks!

Another ineffectual politician is Dale (played by Jack Nicholson) whose ignorance makes him even worse. The movie revolves around Earth being attacked by Martians and the US Government is in complete disarray. With destroyed cities everywhere, Dale does not do anything to stop the attack and instead keeps running hither and thither. His incapability to stop the attacks makes him a complacent politician who shrewdly avoids any trouble.
9. Jack Stanton, Primary Colors

Played by John Travolta, Stanton is a merciless presidential candidate who does not care about the people or even his policies and devotes all his time and energy to smearing other competitors and covering up his affairs through brutal measures. He is a power-hungry politician who symbolizes the dark side of ambition.
10. Mayor West, Family Guy

The animated series holds up a mirror against the decay of human society and West (voiced by Adam West and Sam Elliot) is a perfect example of how cunning a politician can be. His character is flamboyant but crazy, he dates around and is unserious about his position. West has even murdered people on various occasions.
11. Mayor Vaughn, Jaws

Vaughn (played by Murray Hamilton) is a politician who is worried more about earning through the tourist trade than about his town’s residents who are in danger of being killed by sharks. He is a cunning politician who knows the threat but repeatedly ignores Chief Brody’s warnings and is determined to keep the beaches open for summer. Even with all the havoc, he still stays in power.
12. Emperor Palpatine, Star Wars

Played variously by Ian McDiarmid, Nick Jameson, and others, Palpatine is one of the most hated characters in the epic space opera franchise. He rules over the galaxy and is a corrupt and power-hungry character who upends democracy to create a Sith empire. He has risen up the ranks through manipulation and has even killed people who went against him. Palpatine has numerous powers but he uses them for the wrong.
13. Mayor Joe Quimby, The Simpsons

A staple character of the show, Quimby (voiced by Dan Castellaneta), is evil personified. He is corrupt and his bumbling character cannot hide the fact that he takes brides and is a womanizer. In one episode, he left his town, Springfield, during the time a deadly virus was airborne, to live in the Bahamas. A dishonorable character indeed.
14. Charles Logan, 24

Played by Gregory Itzin, Logan is a President but his ways are less than moral. He has orchestrated many corrupt decisions for his personal gains like selling nerve gas to terrorists and uses the entire apparatus of the Government and the military to work like his henchmen and cover up his crimes. He is cowardly, shrewd, and treasonous.
15. Bob Newport, Parks and Recreation

There is not a better show that highlights the red-tapism and bureaucracy of Government institutions in a comedic light. Newport (played by Paul Rudd) is a privileged politician who comes from a family of fortunes and has no ground-level knowledge about the people and their problems. He cunningly uses his wealth in an attempt to gain power and his cluelessness symbolises the absurdity in politics.
16. Coriolanus Snow, The Hunger Games

Played by Donald Sutherland and Tom Blyth, Snow is an autocratic President who rules over Panem and is feared by everyone. He is despotic and uses his power in an unwieldy manner. He used evil strategies to eliminate his enemies on his way to the Presidency and regularly executed his opponents during his regime. He is therefore a shrewd politician who uses fear and brutality to maintain power.
17. Greg Stillson, The Dead Zone

Stillson is another corrupt character who uses various illegal means to stay in power. Played by Martin Sheen, he is highly unstable and does not care about triggering a nuclear war to support his own delusions of might. At his lowest, he uses a child as a shield to protect himself from an attack and is a highly despicable politician.
18. David Nix, Tomorrowland

Played by Hugh Lurie, Nix is a jaded Governor who is apathetic and believes in his own self-riotousness. Like many corrupt politicians, he cannot see anyone beyond himself and it is this attitude of his, which leads to a global catastrophe. He believes that humans gave up on the apocalypse and he therefore allows it to happen so that he can rebuild the world to his liking. He is truly a shrewd and evil character.

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