Capitol was the name of a soap opera which aired on CBS from March 29, 1982 to March 20, 1987. Like its name suggests, the storyline usually revolved around the political intrigues of people in Washington D.C., whose lives intertwined.

The soap opera revolved around the Denning, Clegg, and McCandless families. With the success of such "glamorous" soap operas like Dallas and Dynasty, CBS ordered producer John Conboy to put the serial into production. The more traditional serial Search for Tomorrow was canceled for the new addition. It was the first soap opera to commence production in Los Angeles since The Young and the Restless began in 1973.

The show's opening sequence during its early years was somewhat reminiscent of Dallas as well, except that, of course, it showed aerial scenes of Washington, which had been shot during the exceptionally cold and snowy winter of 1980-1981. The white monumental and governmental buildings against the snow and the leafless trees projected a stark image of power, which was presumably what all of the major characters were constantly struggling to either obtain or increase. The opening sequence for Capitol would continue to primarily showcase the sights of Washington until the final year, when a computerized sequence was instituted, illustrating glamour and sex in addition to the Washington Monument and the Jefferson Memorial.

Although the show was a modest success, CBS canceled the series in December 1986, telling Conboy that the last two months of shows would have to be taped in the span of a month; the Capitol sets were to be torn down and new soap sets put in their places. Conboy complied, albeit begrudgingly, as he wrote a cliffhanger ending for the serial: journalist Sloane Denning was placed in front of a firing squad in South America, and the audience never knew if she lived or died.

The following Monday, Capitol was replaced with The Bold and the Beautiful, which is still in production.