Aaron Shore

**Aaron Shore** (né **Rivera**) is the National Security Advisor to the President of the United States and Vice President-elect of the United States. He was the former White House Deputy Chief-of-Staff in the President Richmond administration and was White House Chief of Staff under President Tom Kirkman. He is portrayed by Adan Canto. He has many relationships throughout the show, including an off and on relationship with Emily Rhodes. (Emily Rhodes & Aaron Shore)

## Overview

Aaron Shore is first seen in Season 1: Pilot. He was then the White House Deputy Chief-of-Staff.

Aaron Shore is one of the very first people to show his support and help to the newly sworn-in President Tom Kirkman after the Capitol Bombing. He is politically smart and tactical, as such he was shortly appointed by President Kirkman as his White House Chief of Staff.

In Season 1, Aaron resigned his position as the White House Chief of Staff after being investigated and interrogated. Stating that it is of the President best interest for him to leave. He was later being offered by Congresswoman Hookstraten to be her Chief Strategist for the Speaker of the House of Representatives. Despite working for Congresswoman Hookstraten, Aaron remains loyal and helpful to President Kirkman. By the end of Season 1, President Kirkman offered Aaron's return to work in the White House. President Kirkman insisted that he would draft Aaron a position in the administration if he has to.

In Season 2, it was revealed that Aaron is the National Security Advisor. He works closely with Hannah Wells.

Aaron's cousin, Nadia Espinosa , having been inspired by Aaron's actions of going to college then working in Washington, came to DC to work for Congresswoman Yoshida.

At the beginning of Season 3, he is show in an intimate relationship with Isabel Pardo, the White House's new Director of Social Innovation. They often confront each other regarding their Latin American heritage. They have a major fight, and break up due to numerous differences. As Aaron discusses this fight with his friend Emily Rhodes, he shares that he doesn't think they can go on.

At the end of Season 3, Isabel ended their relationship.

## Biography

In Season 3 we learn that Aaron Shore was not his given name. It appears as though he initially lied to his girlfriend Isabel about how his name was changed. He claimed that it was changed by his mother before he started kindergarten to help him fit in. In reality, he changed it himself after high school when applying to college. He says that when he was attending prep school, he had an easier time. He talks about how teachers assumed that english was his second language, and let him off easier. He says that people assumed his scholarship was because he was a minority, and talks about how he didn't want his heritage to be the reason he got into college. He says that he wanted to be top of his class and valedictorian on his own merit.

It is also revealed during the campaign that he transported undocumented immigrants across the American border when he was younger. He confides to Emily that his aunt was someone who smuggled people across the border, and asked him to bring people in his van on the way back to El Paso. Though he seems to have been unaware of what he was doing at the time. This comes up during the campaign as vetters look at his bank account and notice payments. After he tells Emily that they are to one of the immigrants, and that no one knows what he did, she promises to help him hide the situation.

## Trivia

* Shore is one of four characters to appear in all 53 episodes of Designated Survivor; the other three being Tom Kirkman, Emily Rhodes, and Seth Wright.
* Aaron is bilingual in English and Spanish.
* He holds dual nationality of both the USA and Mexico.
* First person in his town to have gone to college.
* Grew up in Texas