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There were on the order of 1000 senators in the senate. It seems the Star Wars galaxy was incredibly vast with millions of systems.

In light of this, it seems a bit strange that Naboo would have a seat on the senate. As best I can tell the world is fairly nondescript and inconsequential from the content shown/discussed in the movies.

The senate was a relatively small representation of the overall galaxy - why was Naboo important enough to get a seat on the senate?

Either canon/legends answers are fine.

Rand al'Thor
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    Naboo was important because of its extensive spice moons and plasma core. – Valorum Oct 02 '17 at 15:37
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    In real world, the importance of a nation is not always related to its population. For example, Vatican has a tiny population but the voice of his leader is heard almost anywhere in the world. – Taladris Oct 02 '17 at 15:41
  • @Taladris sure, but if there was a representation of Earth that included 2 world leaders would the Vatican (or any of the numerous smaller countries) be chosen? – enderland Oct 02 '17 at 15:42
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    IIRC the senator was the representative of the sector. A non-descript planet could achieve a senatorial role simply by being the most important planet in that region of space. Exceptions being made for the most important planets of course (think Core worlds having multiple senatorial planets per sector). – amflare Oct 02 '17 at 15:46
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    The description on wookieepedia mentions that Naboo also represents the backwater planets of the Chommell sector. Evidently Naboo is the most civilised and prosperous planet in the vicinity. – Valorum Oct 02 '17 at 15:54
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    It probably helps you getting representation in the Senate if you have an undercover Sith Lord manipulating things. – Wiggo the Wookie Oct 02 '17 at 16:04
  • Palpatine almost certainly spent decades manipulating things to enhance Naboo's importance, too. Step 1, achieve representation. Step 2, become Senator. Step 3, become Chancellor. Step 4... destroy Republic. – Beanluc Oct 02 '17 at 22:32
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    @WiggotheWookie sith lord + plot devices ==> guaranteed representatives. – enderland Oct 02 '17 at 23:38
  • Because of the importance of Jar Jar Binks. – Magno C Oct 03 '17 at 11:39

1 Answers1

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It isn't

As I've mentioned on the site before, it's not necessarily true that a senator represents a single system. Palpatine and Padmé actually represent the Chommell sector, a somewhat larger region of space (though how much larger is unknown). Pablo Hidalgo confirmed this on Twitter in January 2017:

enter image description here

@thesupremepablo Do senators represent sectors or systems? Trandosha and Kashyyyk are in the same sector and each have a senator.

@pablohidalgo Depends on population and other factors. Amidala and Palpatine before her represented the Chommell sector.

Why both (known) senators of that sector have come from Naboo is a question that has thus far not been answered; some possibilities include:

  • Naboo is the only sovereign system in the sector
  • Naboo is the largest sovereign system in the sector
  • Blind chance
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Jason Baker
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  • Ahem; http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Janus_Greejatus/Legends – Valorum Oct 02 '17 at 15:53
  • Also ahem; http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Naboo_Senatorial_Delegation – Valorum Oct 02 '17 at 15:53
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    @Valorum Hey, don't blame me that they keep retconning this nonsense. Padme's Databank article also calls her the Senator of Naboo, which leads me to believe that "Naboo" is a convenient shorthand for "Chommell", probably to the consternation of any other planets in the sector – Jason Baker Oct 02 '17 at 15:55
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    Makes little sense that there isn't a military ready to break a blockade on their capital world – Andrey Oct 02 '17 at 18:29
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    @Andrey Not even every country on Earth has a standing army – Jason Baker Oct 02 '17 at 18:45
  • Obviously Naboo "naboomanded" the voting districts to ensure that it maintains its grip on power. – Yakk Oct 02 '17 at 19:51
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    Indeed. The UN never refers to the council members by the city or building from which they operate their domestic government. – can-ned_food Oct 02 '17 at 23:02
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    @can-ned - But many other organizations do. "The White House" did this. "Pyongyang" said that. "The Kremlin" did so-and-so. – Adamant Oct 03 '17 at 04:22
  • @Adamant Quite so. I also do the same for things above my local administration — e.g. “Harrisburg is telling such–and–such to them–and–them.” Seems more likely to be something used between peers or as a way to avoid implying more ownership or position than diplomatically necessary, wouldn't you say? – can-ned_food Oct 03 '17 at 04:28
  • Is it pertinent that Naboo was described as a “sovereign system” when Amidala was introduced during that one scene in Phantom Menace? Maybe not every one of those ‘millions’ of systems could be so described. Of course, your answer goes towards explaining exactly why Naboo would be considered sovereign in its region of the galaxy. – can-ned_food Oct 03 '17 at 04:32
  • FWIW, calling "Chommell sector" "Naboo" would be an example of "metonymy", and more specifically "synecdoche". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metonymy – IMSoP Oct 03 '17 at 09:29