The campaign is almost over, and thanks to her strong performance in the debate, Leslie is only two points behind Bobby Newport. Leslie's team decide to spend the last day touring Pawnee in a bus to campaign hard in the final stretch, with a depressed Chris asking to do the busy work to distract himself. When they learn that the vans rented to take senior citizens to the polls are no longer available, Ron, Donna, and Tom investigate.
Meanwhile, Andy and Jerry investigate an incident that had occurred earlier, when someone tried to hit Leslie with a pie but missed, hitting Jerry instead. After some investigation, Andy realizes that Ben was the target, and he begins a search for disgruntled employees that Ben may have fired.
Leslie's bus tour goes well until she stops to talk to reporters. When Leslie answers a reporter's question about Nick Newport (Bobby's father) by accusing him of buying the election and making other disparaging comments, the reporter reveals that Nick has died. Ben suggests that Leslie visit Bobby privately to express her condolences, but when they arrive in the bus at the Newport mansion, they interrupt a press conference given by Jennifer Barkley, who uses the opportunity to blast Leslie for her insensitivity.
Meanwhile, Ron, Tom, and Donna learn that the van rental company manager, Bill, was bribed by the Newport campaign to not rent the vans out. The more they try to negotiate with him, the higher he raises his price. They leave, and when they get in the car, they angrily vent about the situation. Behind Donna's car is Bill's car, and he honks at them to move so he can get out. Donna refuses, and he rams her car. She proceeds to reverse her car into his, and the three of them blackmail Bill, saying they'll tell the police he hit Donna's car unless he gives them what they want. As he has no witnesses to confirm his side of the story, Bill agrees to rent them the vans.
While the team try to do damage control, Leslie speaks with Bobby privately. Bobby reveals he only ran for office to get his father's approval, which Leslie relates to by telling a story about trying to win her mother's approval. While hanging around the Newport mansion, April tries to comfort Chris by telling him that he shouldn't be lonely because they are his friends, but it does not work. Jennifer then finds Chris and the two of them hook up.
Bobby speaks to the reporters and tells Leslie's story, but instead inserts himself and his father into it. He then calls Leslie up and tells the reporters that she is a kind person and they should vote for her.
Andy figures out that Sewage Joe was the one who threw the pie at Ben as revenge for firing him. Andy catches Joe attempting another pie throw, but he forgets to actually stop him and Ben is hit in the face.
Tropes
- Beat Them at Their Own Game: How Ron, Tom, and Donna get the van rental business owner to give them the shuttles. Donna gets back at the guy by backing her Mercedes into his car hard enough to damage it, framing him for rear-ending her. With Ron and Tom as witnesses, they threaten to call the police on him unless he gives them the vans. He begrudgingly agrees to do so.
- Brick Joke: Andy gives everyone code names, mostly based on his views of them as romantic prospects. Shortly afterwards, when Leslie starts her stump speech, Andy reports that "I'd Be Lying If I Said I Hadn't Thought About It is in position."
- The Bus Came Back: Sewage Joe was put on a bus after Ben fired him for texting pictures of his penis. Here, he turns out to be the mysterious assailant who threw a pie that almost hits Leslie. He was aiming at Ben to get revenge for firing him and succeeds at the end of the episode.
- Cringe Comedy: Leslie's campaign bus backing over Nick Newport's memorial portrait.
- Earlier in the episode, Leslie's godawful Rodney Dangerfield impression during her stump speech.
- Erotic Dream: Andy admits to having had one about Donna. Donna gives a prideful and knowing smile back in response.
- Exact Words: The van owner did rear-end Donna's car, and Ron and Tom are both willing to testify for it. What they're leaving out is that Donna drove forward and then backed up to make the damage much worse.
- Freudian Trio: While trying to figure out what to do about the Nick Newport crisis, Leslie, Ben, and Ann take on the respective roles of The Kirk, The Spock, and The McCoy.
- I Gave My Word: Being a capitalist libertarian himself, Ron is completely understanding of the van owner's decision to take the better deal. However, he cannot abide by him breaking a contract, saying that a man's word is sacred where he comes from. The guy mocking that and then arbitrarily driving up the price is what motivates Ron to go along with Donna's blackmail.
- Ironic Echo: Ron states that from where he comes from, a man's word is sacred. When he threatens to lie to the police about how the van rental business owner rear-ended Donna's car, Ron says he's willing to bend this rule right here because the other guy was the first one to break his word and was an absolute asshole about it too.
- Jerkass: The owner of the van rental store refuses to donate the shuttles to Leslie's campaign due to being bribed by the Newports and keeps wagging Tom, Ron, and Donna, and even aggressively runs into the back of Donna's vehicle.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: It says something that Donna, who had utterly freaked out crying over a window getting shot and broken in "Hunting Trip", is willing to really dent up her beloved Mercedes Benz to not only get back at a Jerkass but also make sure Leslie gets her votes.
- Killed Off for Real: Nick Newport passes away in this episode.
- Pie in the Face: Jerry and Ben get one courtesy of Sewage Joe.
- Stepford Smiler: Chris has become one due to the string of romantic failures he's gone through over the past year.(All said with a big smile) "If I keep my body moving and my mind occupied at all times, I will avoid falling into a bottomless pit of despair."
- "Well Done, Son" Guy: Bobby was only really running for city council to impress his father.
