United Planets (Earth-7642)

The United Planets is an intergalactic government made up of multiple alien species, It was an interstellar union of planetary governments that agreed to exist semi-autonomously under a single central government based on the principles of universal liberty, rights, and equality, and to share their knowledge and resources in peaceful cooperation, scientific development, space exploration, and mutual defense.

Unlike its imperial rivals, who derived power from a single species subjugating other races, the UP's various member worlds joined willingly and were equals in the UP's democratic society. Throughout most of its history as the dominant galactic power in the Milky Way Galaxy, the United Planets did not style itself as a strong centralized government, but rather as a union of sovereign planets for the purposes of collective security and economic prosperity.

It was originally composed of Xandar and a large number of other planets in the Milky Way Galaxy. Its jurisdiction has never been determined, as at times, it seems to extend beyond the Milky Way and into other galaxies. While the UP is made up of various alien races, it is ruled primarily by the Xandarians. Other races known to inhabit the government are the Krylorians, the Aakons, the Hurctarians, and countless others. The Nova Corps and Legion of Superheroes are the UP's primary military and peacekeeping force.

## Government and Politics

### Membership in the United Planets

The United Planets began as a mutual protection and economic alliance among a number of planets in the galactic core. The United Planets was a voluntary confederation organized on democratic principles under the United Planets Common Charter and in accord with the ideals and purposes embodied in the Declaration of a New Republic. Primary (voting) membership was available to any independent sovereign political entity representing one or more unified planetary populations, or to other recognized and definable territories.

Membership followed an application process (during which the candidate member reviewed the Charter and other governing statutes and agreed to abide by them) and an assessment process (during which the candidate member's annual support contribution was determined).

Affiliate (non-voting) membership was available to subordinate political units (for example, the individual members of a league of worlds) and to duly recognized representatives of sentient species not constituting a political unit.

Observer (non-voting) membership was available to nonmember allies of the United Planets. The Declaration of a New Republic set forth the principles to which the United Planets was dedicated; the common Charter was the actual mechanism by which planets became members, and specified both the rights and duties of members, and the various institutions of government and their powers. The common Charter was a creation of the transitional Provisional Council. Worlds applying to join the United Planets submitted Articles of Membership, while worlds wishing to leave the United Planets did by submitting Articles of Withdrawal.

### Legislative branch

The government of the United Planets was organized around a unicameral legislative body called the Galactic Senate, replacing the United Planets Provisional Council. Primary members were represented in the Senate by a senator. Senators were the ambassadors of their homeworlds, and member worlds were able to maintain their government and society in accordance with local beliefs, customs, and traditions. There was a wide variety of different local governments along the political spectrum: from monarchies to republics to hive-like communes.

Senators received one vote in all matters—procedural and substantive. Although legislation passed by the Senate was binding to all member worlds, most of the everyday legislation followed by citizens of the United Planets was created at the planetary, sector, or regional level. Therefore, the main functions of the Senate were to mediate disputes between members, provide for the common defense, and regulate inter-system trade.

#### Parties and elections

The United Planets has operated under a two-party system for most of its history. The Senate was divided into two feuding factions, the Populists, which believed that almost all authority should reside in individual member worlds, and the Centrists, who supported a stronger central government. The two factions frequently squabbled over policies and government spending, and creating an atmosphere of political deadlock and distrust in the Senate. As a result, the United Planets was unable to carry out several of its functions including preventing the resurgence of organized crime, enforcing financial regulations, and patrolling the shipping lanes.

In some systems, the senator was elected to that post; in others, the world government appointed the senator. Naurilla's monarch appointed their senators, while the Alderbaran Council of Elders elected their senator out of their own ranks (usually the heir to the Royal House of Organa, as the heir, was also the leader of the council). Affiliate members were represented on Trantor Prime by a legate, who could speak in general sessions of the Senate, but could not vote on official Senate business (to avoid dual representation) or serve in the Senate's various working bodies.

As a body with a large and potentially unlimited membership, the Senate-in-whole was an almost impossibly unwieldy structure for getting work done. Consequently, most of the real governance was performed by the Senate's councils, committees, and commissions. The daily business of the Senate proper was primarily speech-making and public debate.

#### Councils

Councils were appointed bodies with autonomous decision-making and appropriation authority over some segment of government operations outside the Senate proper (for example, the Defense Council, which oversaw the Navy). The most populous and powerful members of the United Planets were disproportionately represented on the Senate's councils.

#### Committees

Committees were elected bodies with the authority to administer various aspects of Senate operations, including the general budget. They were semi-autonomous; in the event of a unanimous committee vote, the approval of the Senate-in-whole was not required (however, the Senate-in-whole could override a less-than-unanimous committee decision with a three-to-five majority).

#### Commissions

Commissions were voluntary bodies with an advisory capacity only. They prepared reports on issues of concern for presentation to the President of the Senate, to the Minister of State, to the Supreme Commander, or to the general membership; scheduled and conducted hearings; and contracted for independent research.

## Executive branch

The United Planets was headed by the Chief of State. The Chief of State was elected by fifty percent and one vote majority of the Senators, for four year terms. The Chief of State was also the President of the Senate and Commander-in-Chief of the Fleet, although that title was sometimes used to refer to the highest ranking member of the military.

Tradition varied on the proper form of address for the President. Some preferred "Chief of State," but the address varied under others depending on context. In general, Senators, the Senate bureaucracy, and the Trantori media referred to the President, while the General Ministry, member worlds, and the population of the United Planets often referred to the Chief of State, depending on local languages and history.

The Chief of State could be recalled by a majority vote of the Senate on presentation of a petition of no-confidence by a majority of the Ruling, or Inner, Council, or by a quarter of the primary members of the Senate. The election of a President could be blocked by the Ruling Council on a unanimous vote. In practice, the power of the Ruling Council to void an election and initiate the recall of a sitting President meant that any candidate proposed by or approved by the Ruling Council was likely to be elected by the Senate. The Ruling Council consisted of the chairmen of the Senate councils and the President of the Senate. The President could select any member of the Ruling Council to conduct the business of the Senate in her absence from that body.

If the president became incapacitated, incommunicado, or died, the chairman of the Ministry Council selected an acting Chief of State from among the following: any former President, the current Minister of State, any former Minister of State.

The Chief of State determined most of the United Planets's foreign policy, managed budgetary concerns, However the day-to-day running of government was done by the General Ministry, the bureaucracy of the United Planets, led by a First Administrator. It was organized into several large permanent Ministries, smaller task-oriented service Agencies, and several semi-independent Institutes. The various Senate councils had oversight and financing authority over the corresponding Ministries.

The Cabinet consisted of the heads of the various ministries and was headed by the Minister of State. This body was the link between the Chief of State and the Ministries.

## Judicial branch

The Court of Justice was the judicial branch of the United Planets. The members of the Court of Justice were selected by the Senate Justice Council from a list of nominees presented by the President of the Senate. The First Justice was elected by the other members of the Court from among their number. Nominally independent, the power of the Court of Justice was limited by its narrowly defined jurisdiction: to review charges of violations of the Charter by members or by the other branches of the United Planets's government. The Court of Justice did not serve as the court of last appeal for ordinary civil and criminal cases; those were settled by local judicial authorities on member worlds.

## Economy

The United Planets's influence on the galactic economy was linked to its regulatory powers, production of UP dataries, and authorization of relevant bodies.

At the heart of the galactic economy was the planetary trade. The Interplanetary trade could support a local economy, but, in many cases, the high levels of economic interaction and the massive scale of exchange required for an advanced society could only be funded by interplanetary exports. While some planets maintained their own shipping fleets, most relied on large freight firms, such as Braal Transport Systems, or independent freight haulers to carry their goods along major hyperlanes.

Thousands of currencies were used across UP Space. UP credits were perhaps the most widespread form of currency. Because of the UP's exceptional membership, dataries were accepted on all but the most remote planets. The UP continued to deal with other cultures which had money-based economies, and private businesses from other races such as the Ferengi were sometimes permitted on UP stations.

## Society and culture

The United Planets had a very diverse culture. Member worlds were able to maintain their own culture in accordance with local beliefs, customs, and traditions. There was a wide variety of different cultures within the United Planets: from religious communities to hive-like communes.

UP culture, values, and technology had vast influence; across space and time, as well as other  dimensions and subspace domains. Encountering numerous clashing ideologies, some conflicts escalated into significant resistance, such as armed conflict, and even temporal attacks intended to prevent key historical events from occurring.

## Military

The United Planets's earliest days were not peaceful ones, since, as the UP expanded across the galaxy, it encountered many warlike species. The United Planets realized the need for an army and navy to keep the peace. The UP's military forces would serve throughout many conflicts, including the UP-Khundian War, the Kree-UP War, and the Dominion War as well as the absolutely ravenous Great Galactic War.

### Combined Defense Forces of the United Planets

The Combined Defense Forces of the United Planets was the military arm of the United Planets. At its peak, it operated ten full fleets, each consisting of hundreds of warships, transports, and support vessels, divided into battle groups and task forces, in addition to ground troop divisions and starfighter wings. It encompassed three branches: the United Planets Defense Fleet, the ground-based United Planets army, and the United planets Special Forces. The Defense Fleet was based on Chaadrila.

The United Planets established a series of academies on several worlds, including Chaadrila. Reflecting the United Planets's anti-militaristic ethos, its soldiers wore simple jackets, trousers, and little armor that were designed not to instill terror and awe.

The United Planets Starfleet maintained a Digital Warfare Department, and a Pilots Commission. Some of the peacetime functions of the United Planets Starfleet included enforcing financial regulations and conducting comprehensive patrols of galactic shipping lanes in order to protect the galaxy from large-scale organized crime syndicates and escorting senators on government business.

The Supreme Commander, appointed by the Defense Council with the approval of the President of the Senate, led the Defense Force, along with United Planets High Command. He reported to the Chief of State.

### Nova Corps

The **Nova Corps** was the intergalactic military and police force of the United Planets, led by an individual holding the rank of Nova Prime. Originally a elite peacekeeping force, After the Military Disarmament Act, the Nova Corps was moved to a more prominent position as a more centralized military force, but it still retained a small force only for security purposes.

### Relationship with the Legion of Superheroes

When the formation of the United Planets in 2161, the Legion which was formed under the Federal Alliance's jurisdiction, the Legion of Superheroes pledged its support for the new government, and thus became formally answerable to the Galactic Senate. But despite the Legion's allegiance to the Senate, the Legion had always enjoyed a great degree of autonomy to act as they saw fit, especially regarding internal Legion affairs.

But as the United Planets gradually expanded its sphere of influence over the known galaxy, the unprecedented level of peace and prosperity also led to a virtually irreversible trend in corruption, decadence, and stagnation, especially amongst the elected officials of the Senate. Yet throughout all of that time, the Legion of Superheroes maintained its traditions and principles, often acting as a beacon of honor and integrity within a society that was becoming increasingly amoral and unjust.

The United Planets government's decline into greed and complacency was not lost on the Legion either; many within the Legion loathed the thought of being accountable to an ineffectual system that was too large and disorganized to effectively counter the growing list of problems that plagued the United Planets and its citizens. Throughout its seven century long history, the United Planets were forced to intervene on "behalf" of the Senate by diffusing internal and external threats to the United Planets's stability.