Will show’s viewers still hail the ‘Chief’?

President Mackenzie Allen is on the defensive after a compromising picture appears of her husband with an intern when the first new episode of “Commander in Chief” since late January airs at 10 p.m. Thursday on ABC.

Just as the first female presidency may be on the ropes, so is the show itself.

With Geena Davis in the lead role, “Commander in Chief” was the first breakout hit of the fall season, attracting more than 16 million viewers in its first weeks on the air. But it stumbled when creator Rod Lurie was removed as show-runner and nearly fell when Steven Bochco, fresh off the failure of “Over There” on FX, took over. More adept at shows like “NYPD Blue” that involve cops and guns, Bochco left in early March.

It didn’t help that the Tuesday night drama had run into the Fox juggernaut known as “American Idol,” which generates more votes for singers than most real-life candidates get for office. Viewership for “Commander in Chief” had fallen below 11 million by late January.

Network officials hoped that keeping the show off for nearly three months would increase demand. That didn’t work when the WB’s “Everwood” came back after a long hiatus, but at least “Commander in Chief” returns with a more protected time slot -- away from “Idol” and immediately after the Simon Cowell-produced and “Idol”-formatted “American Inventor,” whose 12 finalists will be announced this week.

Running “Chief” now is executive producer Dee Johnson, who has been with the show since the start; she co-wrote Thursday’s episode with Alison Cross.