The Sith played both sides of the Clone Wars to reshape the Star Wars galaxy, but what if Count Dooku was the one who led the Republic and not Palpatine? In the Star Wars prequel trilogy, Senator Palpatine caused himself to be elected the new Supreme Chancellor of the Republic, planning to one day become Emperor. He accomplished this by having Dooku lead the Separatists against the Republic, giving Palpatine an excuse to acquire more power for himself.

However, it’s interesting to consider what would happen if the two Sith Lords had decided to switch places. Would the same basic plan lead to the same outcome, or would their differing strengths and weaknesses lead to a radically different version of the Star Wars timeline? By making one change to the Star Wars movies, we can follow a new chain of events caused by Dooku leading the Republic.

What If Palpatine Failed To Become Supreme Chancellor?

The first big step in his original plan

Palpatine’s rise to power truly began when he manipulated the Senate into making him the new Supreme Chancellor, but let’s consider an alternative outcome. In this new timeline, perhaps Palpatine doesn’t convince Queen Amidala to call for a vote of no confidence in Chancellor Valorum, or if she does, Palpatine can’t rally enough support behind the scenes to beat the other candidates. Amidala would still return to Naboo, but now Palpatine must adjust his strategy.

While he could seek the Chancellorship again, his failure causes Palpatine to consider another possibility. As Darth Sidious, Palpatine has already forged a secret alliance with Dooku, who becomes his new apprentice after Darth Maul’s apparent death on Naboo. Dooku has long been critical of corruption in the Republic and the Jedi blindly obeying the Senate, something that Palpatine can use to his advantage.

Palpatine Instructs Dooku To Become Chancellor Of The Republic

Changing the Republic from within rather than replacing it

Instead of having Dooku form the Separatists, who want to overthrow the Republic, Palpatine tells Dooku to become the new Chancellor of the Republic. After all, there were Jedi Chancellors in ancient times, so while Dooku may no longer be a Jedi, his reputation and wisdom would be respected. Reclaiming his тιтle as Count of Serenno also means Dooku has all the money he needs to run a successful campaign.

Dooku argues that the galaxy needs a leader capable of fixing the Republic and the Jedi Order, something he is uniquely qualified to do. He secretly relishes the opportunity to have power over the Senate and no longer having to listen to the Jedi Council he has so often disagreed with. Running on this platform of change and reform, Dooku wins the race in a landslide and becomes the Republic’s new Supreme Chancellor.

The Commerce Guilds Support The Republic In This Timeline

They will go where Dooku goes

The first significant change following Dooku’s victory is that the various commerce guilds support the Republic, rather than breaking away to form the Separatist Council. They see Dooku as a fellow aristocrat they can work with (and possibly control), and the Trade Federation has no one else to turn to after being abandoned by Darth Sidious. Dooku presents this as corporations serving the Republic more directly and not causing chaos through their independence like on Naboo.

However, not everyone sees it that way, including many Jedi. They see Dooku promising to end corruption but giving the wealthy more power to influence government policy. Many also see him as biased toward the Jedi Order and fear that the Jedi also have a new way to directly influence the Senate, even if Dooku is technically no longer one of them.

Palpatine Convinces Naboo To Form The Separatist Movement

The best place to start is at home

With his homeworld still recovering from the Trade Federation invasion, Palpatine decides to manipulate Queen Amidala in another way… asking her to secede from the Republic. Although Padmé would have become a fierce Republic loyalist as Senator, as Queen she believes the Republic no longer functions. Dooku’s collaboration with the commerce guilds makes her wish that she had listened to Palpatine when she had the chance.

The Naboo’s victory over the Trade Federation without the Republic’s help convinces them they can stand independently. Although Padmé knows they only did this with the Jedi’s help, she fears what they may become under Dooku’s influence, so she agrees to Palpatine’s plan. She and the Naboo don’t want war, only to give other worlds the same freedom to leave the Republic, but Palpatine has other plans.

Palpatine Leads An Uprising In The Outer Rim

The perfect place to gain support from those abandoned by the Republic

With the Dooku and Republic controlling so much wealth, Palpatine must acquire money and resources elsewhere. Using Darth Sidious’ connections, Palpatine sows more chaos and suffering in the Outer Rim, allowing him to then publicly urge the downtrodden to fight back. This leads to multiple uprisings where crime lords are slain, dictators are overthrown, and backwater worlds form their own governments. Padmé and the other Separatists have no objections to stepping in and offering aid to new allies.

Palpatine gains credit and admiration for helping those who had long felt abandoned by the Jedi and the Republic. Meanwhile, Dooku presents this as the galaxy descending into chaos and anarchy, and how many new Separatist worlds are essentially dictatorships forcing citizens to serve Palpatine’s cause. Palpatine gradually convinces the Separatists that peace is not an option, and despite Padmé’s best efforts, the Clone Wars soon break out.

Dooku Manipulates Obi-Wan While Palpatine Corrupts Anakin

Playing on their differing philosophies to turn them against each other

With their roles reversed from the original timeline, Dooku and Palpatine are positioned to manipulate two Jedi instead of one. As the leader of the Republic, a former Jedi Master, and Qui-Gon Jinn’s teacher, Dooku befriends Obi-Wan and attempts to convert him. While this will inevitably fail, Obi-Wan still feels connected to Dooku because of Qui-Gon and maintains his allegiance to the Republic and democracy.

Although Palpatine is now considered an enemy, he gradually manipulates Anakin throughout the war. He remembers the kind man who looked after him when he first came to Coruscant, and Anakin is conflicted since Palpatine helped his homeworld of Tatooine when the Jedi and the Republic could not. Anakin also feels the need to help Padmé, not realizing she is becoming disillusioned with Palpatine after seeing the reality of his vision.

Palpatine Betrays Dooku To Win The Clone Wars

Treachery is the way of the Sith

While Dooku believes that the plan is still to corrupt the Republic from within and turn the Jedi into a dark-side army, Palpatine will never allow his servants to have more power than him. Launching a final attack on Coruscant, which Dooku believes will be the beginning of the end for the Separatists, Palpatine instead issues Order 66. This turns the clones against the Jedi and deprives the Republic of its army, allowing the Separatists to capture Coruscant.

Before Dooku can escape, he is confronted by Anakin Skywalker, whom Palpatine has secretly converted to the Separatist cause by this point. After a fierce lightsaber duel, Anakin is victorious, and Palpatine convinces him to execute the man who has long stood in the way of real peace and progress for the galaxy. With Dooku’s death, the fall of Coruscant, and the treachery of the Republic military, the Separatists win the Clone Wars.

Palpatine broadcasts surprisingly detailed evidence to the galaxy that Dooku was secretly a Sith Lord who engineered the war to gain power. He also claims that Dooku’s influence corrupted the Jedi Order and that they had always planned to aid his treason. Palpatine says that the Clones willingly turned on the Jedi when he told them this secret, with no one realizing that the inhibitor chips forced them to carry out Order 66.

The Outer Rim Is The New Seat Of Power In Palpatine’s Empire

A symbolic shift in the history of the galaxy

Palpatine declares that the Separatist Alliance will now be a Galactic Empire concentrated in the Outer Rim. Although this goes against the spirit of independence that the movement was founded on, Palpatine’s followers are fanatically loyal to him and fear returning to the way things used to be. Palpatine also brings more power and wealth to the Outer Rim than ever before, and even Mid Rim worlds are compliant after the revelations about Dooku and the Jedi.

Obi-Wan And Yoda Form A Rebellion In The Deep Core

The only safe place to hide and plan for the future

Of course, not everyone stands for this new Empire, including Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda. Because Palpatine’s Empire rules from the Outer Rim, the Jedi and rebels must hide together within the deep core, rather than spread across the galaxy. This brings them to Tython, an ancient Jedi world hidden within the core, the perfect place to reconnect with the Force and plan a rebellion.

The Rebellion Would Win Much Sooner

A consequence of Palpatine’s new strategy

Because the Sith conquered the Republic by force rather than changing it from within, the Empire will be overthrown much sooner in this timeline. The once powerful core worlds want to fight back, and Senators like Bail Organa and Mon Mothma have an easier time rallying support for this reason. Even Outer Rim worlds realize they are no better off under Palpatine and that there must be a better way.

While there would be even more distrust between former enemies in this timeline, Jedi, Republicans, Separatists, and more must all work together to stop Palpatine. After a brief but ᴅᴇᴀᴅly civil war, the Rebellion launches a final attack at a stronghold on Naboo in the Mid Rim, where Palpatine is currently located. Ending Palpatine’s reign on Naboo would be poetic since it’s where it began, and it would help transition into the next era of the galaxy.

The New Republic Is Centered In The Mid Rim

A symbolic gesture of unity for a divided galaxy

Rather than returning the seat of power to the core or keeping it in the Outer Rim, the New Republic compromises by establishing the Senate in the Mid Rim. Although this is where the Clone Wars began when Naboo broke away from the Republic, it only happened because the Republic had failed to help its own members. Meeting at the halfway point will help reunify the galaxy, while Naboo will serve as a reminder not to repeat past mistakes.

There are many other questions left to explore in this alternate timeline: the fate of several characters, how individual plotlines from the movies would be different, and where the galaxy goes from here. Only so much can be covered in one post, but this analysis illustrates how the overall Star Wars saga would be drastically altered. It’s incredible to theorize how Count Dooku leading the Republic instead of Palpatine could change so much in the galaxy far, far away.