Cherry Jones has been appointed president on the upcoming season of "24," sources said.

The network wouldn't confirm, but sources said Jones has come on board the real-time thriller, the first major casting addition to the show's upcoming seventh season.

"24" producers had been contemplating having a female president next season for some time. (HR 6/22)

Their decision to go for it adds another wrinkle to the closely watched Democratic Party's presidential race, in which Hillary Clinton is the frontrunner.

Production of the 20th Century Fox TV/Imagine TV-produced "24" was recently delayed until August when a set-in-Africa storyline fell through and the producers went back to the drawing board.

Jones' feature credits include "Ocean's Twelve" and "The Village."