The series was created by Rod Lurie, who had previously written and directed the political films The Contender and Deterrence.

During production, showrunner Rod Lurie was replaced by Steven Bochco, and after ratings kept declining, Bochco was in turn replaced by Dee Johnson.

Commander in Chief received mixed reviews, with an aggregate score of 56/100 on Metacritic, though Geena Davis's performance was widely praised as a successful comeback.

Reason magazine criticized the series for glorifying an 'Imperial Presidency' and for favoring the use of government force to impose certain Americans' values on others, both domestically and internationally.

Critics drew negative comparisons between the show's premise and 24's black president David Palmer, noting that unlike Palmer, who was elected under normal circumstances, Commander in Chief's female president only took office after the sitting president's sudden death.

A USA Today review noted the show focused more on President Allen's family life than on national or world political events, and compared her leadership style favorably to Josiah Bartlet from The West Wing.

The show was ranked the No. 1 program on Tuesday nights until Fox's American Idol premiered in January, and it was the season's top new show until CBS's Criminal Minds overtook it.

After the show's ratings declined, ABC moved it from Tuesdays at 9 p.m. to Thursdays at 10 p.m. to compete directly with Without a Trace and ER, before cancelling it in May 2006 with the final three episodes airing after the official ratings year had ended.