Prop Joe manipulates Marlo into aligning with him and Slim Charles. When Rawls alerts Carcetti that Watkins has turned his back on Royce, Carcetti attempts to get Watkins to support his campaign. However, he must then respond to a potentially devastating smear campaign, and an unexpected offer from Clay Davis. As Greggs is partnered with Det. Edward Norris on the murdered witness case, Rawls tells Landsman there is to be no progress on the case until the day after the election. Namond is pushed into drug dealing by his mother De'Londa when the family are cut off by Brianna, who has herself severed ties with Avon. As Prez goes out of his way to help Dukie, Cutty is shocked to learn why some of his boxers haven't been coming to the gym, and the MCU's attempt to use video evidence against Marlo fails miserably. When Randy reveals his inadvertent involvement in a murder, Prez goes to Daniels for advice, who hands the case to Carver. Colvin's new "pilot program" is implemented, separating the worst behaved students from those more likely to do well in school. Meanwhile, as the city votes in the primary election, Marlo and Chris implement their plan for Omar.
This episode contains examples of:
- Actually Pretty Funny: The racist who accosts Carcetti describes African-Americans as "moolies", which puzzles, and cracks up, Norman more than it offends him.
- Back Story: Norman used to work at the Baltimore Sun.
- Bait-and-Switch Character Intro: The two inmates who walk into Omar's cell. One pulls out a knife, before giving it to him and explains they're the help Butchie called.
- Brief Accent Imitation: When telling Carcetti what he (correctly) thinks Clay wants, Norman imitates Clay's Catchphrase "Sheeeit".
- Bring My Brown Pants: Discussed: Santangelo says the best way to find Omar is to look for a corner boy who's running away and who's shit himself.
- Call-Back: Before kissing him, Terri reminds Carcetti he promised her a win bonus, and when he rejects her at first, she also tells him Norman told her about his earlier tryst.
- Captain Obvious: Norris, or at least according to Kima after they've been busted to election detail.Norris: Life is timing.Kima: No shit, fucknuts.
- Catchphrase: When Carcetti, at his victory celebration, tells Clay, "Shouldn't you be dead to me?", Clay responds, "Sheeeit."
- Character Development: Carcetti, or so it seems to Terri when he turns her down.
- Epigraph: "Don't try this shit at home", which Norman says to Carcetti to keep him from making campaign decisions.
- Foreign Cuss Word: the racist old guy shaking hands with Carcetti calls black people "moolies" an Italian-American slur against black people.
- Foreshadowing: Obviously, the election results, but also, the Escalating War between Herc and Marlo (as well as Marlo and Omar), Randy telling what he knows about Lex's murder), Namond's reluctance to follow in his father's footsteps, the dead witness, and Dennis obliviousness to how seeing his kids' mothers affects his relationship with the kids all become important later.
- I Have No Son!: The sibling variant; when De'Londa threatens to have Wee-Bey talk to the police about Avon, Brianna cuts her off by saying, "I couldn't care less about Avon".
- Phrase Catcher: Carcetti says, according to Norman, the doctored flier was "all in the game".
- Put on a Bus: This is the last we see of Brianna and Terri (though, to be fair, since De'Londa's been cut off, and Terri's job is done now that Carcetti's won, there's no need for them to be back).
- Reassigned to Antarctica: Just for a day, but Kima and Norris are reassigned to patrol during the primary election to slow down the investigation into the murdered witness until after the voting is over. Although, Kima does look pretty cute in uniform.
- Title Drop: Carcetti tells the preacher at the beginning he's within the "margin of error", which the preacher thinks is an interesting phrase.
- We Will Not Use Photoshop in the Future: Averted, though just because it's blatant doesn't make Carcetti any less upset about it.
