Politics Politics were the activities associated with the policies of a government . Those involved in such activities were referred to as politicians . Across the galaxy , there existed many different forms of government . Forms of government . Republic . In a republic , people are governed by an elected representative and by an elected leader rather than by a monarch . With its body of elected senator s , the Galactic Republic was a galaxy - spanning democracy . However that system was not without its drawbacks . As admitted by Padmé Amidala , a Republic senator , elected representatives were often too stubborn to reach consensus , and some were known to have even taken bribes . Additionally , many of those representatives were tempted to forget common interest and looked out only for themselves and their home systems . The Jedi Knight Obi - Wan Kenobi thought that most senators were only focused on pleasing those who sponsored their campaigns , which prompted them to forget the ideals of democracy . Monarchy . In a monarchy , a single individual — known as king or queen depending on gender — would rule his or her people by birthright , grounding their legitimacy in lineage . The Elder Houses were comprised of ancient galactic royalty . Sometimes , however , the legitimacy of a lineage was contested . During the Clone Wars , Prince Lee - Char of Mon Cala was preordained to succeed his father Yos Kolina , but the Quarren inhabitants of the planet wanted to place one of their own on the throne , which prompted them to wage war with the crown heir . Other planets ruled by monarchies included Aleen , Toydaria , and Onderon . Some monarchs , such as those of Naboo , were elected to the throne . By the time of the New Republic , few people still took hereditary nobility seriously , including nobles themselves . Due to this , the noble titles of many planets became largely ceremonial . Empire . An empire was a government that frequently had many territories under the rule of a single leader , who was typically called an emperor or an empress depending on the gender . Dictatorship . A dictatorship was a form of government in which central authority is vested in the hands of a single individual , who often held vast executive power . The authority of that individual , called a dictator , is often enforced through various oppressive mechanisms , such as repression of the press , detention of political activists and the use of omnipresent security measures to monitor public opinion , often with hopes of manipulating it in favor of the regime . A form of dictatorship was called fascism . At the time of the Clone Wars , the planet Quarzite was ruled over by a Belugan dictator , Lord Otua Blank . When Sheev Palpatine , then Supreme Chancellor of the Republic , announced the establishment of the First Galactic Empire , the galactic government shifted from a democracy to a dictatorship , more specifically , a fascist regime . Rule by military officers was called stratocracy . Other forms . There also existed hybrid forms of government . On the planet of Naboo , the head of state was referred to as a king or queen despite being elected by his or her people . He or she was assisted by a body of ministers called the Naboo Royal Advisory Council . Additionally , that elected sovereign could only serve two terms in accordance with the Naboo constitution , a type of constitutional monarchy . Behind the scenes . The term " " based on the real - world equivalent was absent from " Star Wars " media until its inclusion in the 2016 reference book " " , in which the in - universe author expresses shame over the pro - imperial propaganda poster " Imperius Unitada ober Totallex " for its " unflinching fascist image . "