The war between the Rebel Alliance and the Galactic Empire did not end at the Battle of Endor in Return of the Jedi. It continued on for another year, with the Imperial remnants continuing the fight and the Rebels re-organized into the New Republic.
So at the same time they were trying to finally defeat the Empire, they were also at work setting up a new government. And trying to establish a New Republic amidst ongoing war proved difficult, not least of which because the Imperial remnants sought to eliminate their leadership. In the recent Star Wars comic The Battle of Jakku: Republic Under Siege (written by Alex Segura), it has been revealed that the rogue Imperial warlord Governor Ubrik Adelhard hired assassins to track down and eliminate would-be New Republic senators.
First up was the Kel Dor Mirim Kess. He had been a senator in the Galactic Republic before it fell and was reorganized into the Empire, and upon the Empire’s defeat, Princess Leia Organa called him and requested he join the New Republic Senate that was getting established. Kess was overcome with pride at the request, and he intended to serve. But the Trandoshan assassin Kranor found Kess first, killing him in a forest on Kewwil. In the aftermath of Kess’s murder, we’re told by the narration that Kess is “the first in a long line of former Senators who will not be able to return to service. Who will not be able to enjoy the fruits of the New Republic.”
The next issue of the comic (#3) shows another potential senator having been killed. One of Mon Mothma’s most trusted agents, Calder Behrens, finds Galward Paronis’s body on Krassis, having been assassinated. Calder described Paronis as “a stalwart and savvy politician” who “would have been a fitting addition to the New Republic.” Instead, he was another senator eliminated by Adelhard’s hunters. Tragically, Calder was also assassinated while investigating Paronis’s death, while Kranor attempted to kill Luke Skywalker and his allies.
Though Adelhard wasn’t working in league with the other Imperial remnants, it does show how these Imperial holdovers sought to de-stabilize the newly-formed Republic and keep them from governing. Political assassinations send a message that no one is safe, and it creates further chaos in a period already filled with it. Furthermore, it distracts Republic leadership like Mon Mothma and Leia Organa, forcing their focus to be divided between war efforts and establishing a government – and now dealing with the fact that people they’ve been asking to serve are being killed.
Ultimately, the New Republic would achieve final victory at the Battle of Jakku. The New Republic Senate had been established by that point, and it gave authorization for an attack of the gathered Imperial forces on Jakku, where Admiral Gial Ackbar led the New Republic fleet to defeat the Imperial remnants. In the aftermath, the Empire formally surrendered and the war was over, but the New Republic Senate continued to experience growing pains as they transitioned from war to government.
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