May Gilliam (Chris Rock) is a Washington D.C. neighborhood Alderman, who's about to be redlined out of his job. But after the untimely death of the party frontrunner, Gilliam is plucked from obscurity and thrust into the limelight as his party's nominee - for President of the United States.

The film also stars popular comedian and television star Bernie Mac ("Ocean's 11", TV's "The Bernie Mac Show") as Gilliam's supportive older brother Mitch, a bail bondsman, who becomes his unlikely running mate. Rounding out the main cast are : Dylan Baker ("Road to Perdition") as Gilliam's campaign manager; Nick Searcy ("One Hour Photo") as Gilliam's much more politically savvy opponent; Lynn Whitfield ("Stepmom") as Gilliam's reluctant advisor, who is slowly won over by her unorthodox candidate; Robin Givens ("Book of Love") as the ex-girlfriend who dumped Gilliam, but who now sees his candidacy as her chance at becoming First Lady; Tamala Jones ("On The Line") as the new woman in Gilliam's life, who believes in him regardless of the election outcome; James Rebhorn ("Far From Heaven") as Senator Bill Arnot, the party leader who is more interested in his own future than in Gilliam's; and Stephanie March ("Law & Order :SVU") as a campaign worker with special talents.

Rap artist Nate Dogg appears throughout the film as musical narrator. "Head of State" is produced by Ali LeRoi, Chris Rock and Michael Rotenberg ("Down to Earth"), with Ezra Swerdlow ("Wag The Dog") serving as executive producer.