Liz is a Black high school senior in a predominantly white, wealthy Midwestern town. She plays first-chair clarinet, arranges music for her favorite band, Kittredge, and works at Melody Music. She lives with her grandparents and younger brother, Robbie, and hopes to become a hematologist to help sickle cell patients. Her primary motivation is securing a scholarship to Pennington College to ease her family's financial burden.

Gabi is Liz's longtime best friend and a talented designer headed to the Fashion Institute of Technology. She comes from a wealthy family and understands the conservative, traditional expectations of their town. She often takes control of situations, using her fashion expertise to give Liz a makeover for the prom campaign.

Rachel is the class president and the frontrunner for Campbell High School's prom queen. She represents the wealthy, privileged demographic of the town and uses her resources to maintain her status. She actively targets Liz with bullying and prejudice, seeing her as an unworthy competitor for the crown.

Jordan is a biracial student who became extremely popular after joining the football team. He and his wealthy family avoid much of the town's prejudice due to his athletic status. He used to be Liz's closest friend before high school, but he distanced himself to fit in, causing a deep rift between them.

Amanda is a new student from Chicago who joins the school band as a drummer. She is openly queer, dresses in a punk-leaning aesthetic, and immediately stands out in the conservative town of Campbell. She is in town with her father to care for her great-aunt and decides to run for prom court to make friends and honor her late mother.

Britt is a fiercely loyal member of Liz's friend group who brings a rough-and-tumble energy to their dynamic. Her parents own a print shop, giving her the resources to help design and produce campaign materials. She is highly perceptive about the systemic inequalities at their school.

Stone is the fourth member of Liz's core friend group. She blends spiritual beliefs with technical skills, offering both crystal cleansings and custom-coded tracking apps. She supports Liz's prom campaign by building software to monitor Campbell Confidential's polling data.

Mr. K is the young, enthusiastic band teacher at Campbell High School and a Pennington College alumnus. He serves as a mentor to Liz, encouraging her musical talent and helping her prepare for her college auditions. He cultivates a safe, welcoming environment in the band room for students who feel like outsiders.

Emme is Jordan's girlfriend and the school's ideal picture of a prom queen, possessing a classic, sophisticated style. She is known for being incredibly sweet and friendly, though she has recently been absent from school for personal reasons, leaving a power vacuum in the prom court race.

Granny is Liz and Robbie's strict but fiercely loving grandmother and guardian. She works hard at a nursing home to provide for her family following her daughter's death. She enforces family rules, like eating dinner together, to maintain a tight-knit household and honor her late daughter's wishes.

Grandad is Liz and Robbie's grandfather and co-guardian. He is a stable, easygoing presence in the Lighty household who balances Granny's strictness. He accepts his grandchildren exactly as they are without question or hesitation.

Robbie is Liz's younger brother, who suffers from sickle cell anemia. His frequent medical crises require constant attention from his family, though he hates feeling like a burden. He is Liz's biggest cheerleader and actively encourages her to pursue her dreams rather than sacrificing everything for him.

Dr. Lamont is a former hematologist who now runs Bryant House, a community center serving a predominantly Black neighborhood in Indianapolis. She is the professional inspiration behind Liz's dream of becoming a doctor.

Quinn is a bright blonde, popular student and close friend of Rachel's. Unlike Rachel, Quinn is superficially nice to Liz and lacks her friend's malicious streak. As the daughter of a sports dentist, she knows a lot about football strategy, which proves useful during the powder-puff game.

Madame Simoné is the high school's French teacher and the strict coordinator of the prom committee. She uses a fake French accent despite living in Campbell her whole life. She enforces the school's traditional rules and often observes the students' conflicts without immediately intervening.

Dr. Fredrickson is Robbie's current hematologist and one of the few Black female hematologists in the state. She is a former protégé of Dr. Lamont and represents the exact career path Liz hopes to pursue. She is highly professional and stern but deeply compassionate toward her patients' families.

Principal Wilson is the head administrator at Campbell High School. He acts as a mouthpiece for the conservative parents on the PTA and prioritizes the school's reputation and traditional status quo over the well-being of marginalized students.

Derek is Rachel's popular boyfriend and a prominent jock at Campbell High School. He participates in grand, viral prom proposals and is part of the wealthy social elite that dictates the school's social hierarchy.

Melly is a freshman at Campbell High School who feels like an outsider. She represents the younger student body who feels seen and inspired by Liz's unconventional run for prom court.

Katherine is a freshman student at Campbell High School. Along with her friend Melly, she feels out of place in the wealthy, traditional school environment and enthusiastically backs Liz's campaign for prom queen.

Lucy is a close friend of Rachel Collins and part of the popular crowd at Campbell High School. While she runs in wealthy, exclusive social circles, she is generally more observant and less actively hostile than Rachel.