ABC and Shonda Rhimes set to put Scandal to rest with upcoming season 7

Scandal fans have only one more season to go before the drama ends its term at the White House. ABC is reportedly set to announce the end of the Shonda Rhimes production next week with the upcoming season 7 being the final one.

According to TVLine, the series announcement will be made at ABC's upfront presentation in New York on 16 May. ABC and ShondaLand have declined to comment.

Rhimes, who helms the political thriller centred on Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington) and her crisis management firm's relationship with the White House, has hinted time and again that the show would soon find itself closing, despite its high TV ratings.

"I've already decided when Scandal is ending," she previously told The Hollywood Reporter. "I think there's only so much Scandal you can tell satisfactorily."

In January, ABC also confirmed that the executive producer had an end date in mind. "I would say yes, in Shonda's head," ABC Entertainment chief Channing Dungey said regarding Rhimes' plans to end the show. "I know already that she has some great ideas for next season, which will be season seven. We have not really talked about what happens after that. But I love the show and I would happily keep the show on as long as she feels that she has creative runway to write the show."

Scandal has been one of the network's strongest weekday shows and helped ABC gain a Thursday night stronghold. In February, the show was confirmed for a seventh season along with Rhimes' Grey's Anatomy and How To Get Away With Murder.