Born in 67 BBY, Bail Organa was the only son of his parents, and he had three sisters: Rouge, Celly, and Tia. Like most of the scions of the Organa family, Bail was trained to eventually take up Alderaan's Senate seat. It was the actions of civic-minded statesmen such as Finis Valorum that finally convinced Bail that he could do well in the Senate.

In 32 BBY, long before his ascension to Viceroy, Alderaan was wracked by the Alderaan Ascendancy Contention, a bitter feud between House Organa and House Antilles over which family had the proper claim to the throne. Jedi Watchman Jorus C'baoth solved the conflict peacefully, the families joining together in marriage at the Jedi's behest.

Bail Organa served the Galactic Republic as a senator during its final days, having succeeded Senator Bail Antilles, his relative by marriage. Though a new senator, he quickly gained the ear of Chancellor Palpatine, agreeing with his view on bureaucratic stagnation. He also established political relationships with other like minded senators, including Garm Bel Iblis of Corellia, Padmé Amidala of Naboo, Doman Beruss of Illodia, and Mon Mothma of Chandrila, with whom he had a very good personal friendship. His residence on Coruscant during his time as a senator was called Cantham House, although he had an apartment in 500 Republica as well. Organa also became close friends with former Chancellor Valorum.

During the Separatist Crisis, Organa pushed to have Alderaan loosen its immigration restrictions to allow refugee resettlement, and was appointed to the Loyalist Committee. Though not a militarist, it was expected he would vote in favor of creating an army. When it became clear that the Separatists had no interest in negotiations, Organa advocated quick action but realized that the Senate would not approve using the Clone Army found on Kamino. Organa thus voted for granting Palpatine emergency powers.

Christophsis

Shortly before the Battle of Christophsis, Organa led a relief force to the planet to aid the besieged people and beleaguered troops and was soon hemmed in by a Separatist blockade led by famed Admiral Trench. Trapped on Christophsis' surface, Organa and his relief effort soon began to run out of food and water. When Jedi Knights Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi led an assault against Trench's fleet in an attempt to break through and aid Organa, the Admiral responded with a withering attack, forcing the Jedi to retreat behind a nearby moon. Trench staged several devastating attack runs against Organa's on-planet camp to draw Skywalker and Kenobi out from behind the moon, but he and his blockade were finally broken by a stealth ship manned by Skywalker and Admiral Wullf Yularen.

Journey to Zigoola

A few months into the Clone Wars, Bail was given coordinates to the Sith planet Zigoola by his secret informant, Alinta. Having heard Senator Amidala mention the Sith in a conversation, he asked her to contact the Jedi so that he could confide in them the location of the planet. Obi-Wan Kenobi was dispatched to the Senator's apartment to learn of this threat. Refusing to reveal his contact, and demanding to accompany the Jedi to the Sith world, Kenobi and Organa proceeded on a journey to Wild Space. Throughout the trip, Organa and Kenobi argued and harassed each other; Kenobi attempted to kill the Senator several times after losing control of himself to the Sith spirits of the world. By the end of the trip however, the duo managed to come to a mutual respect, and even a friendship, after surviving together on the barren world. While investigating the planet, they discovered that the source of all the Sith attacks was from a Sith holocron located inside a Sith Temple. After destroying the holocron, and the temple in the process, Organa and Obi-Wan were rescued by Senator Amidala and team of clone troopers.

Aiding the Twi'leks

{{Quote|You play a dangerous game, Organa. Next time, you will not get away so easily.|Lott Dod, to Bail Organa|Supply Lines}}

After a successful trade mission, Organa was contacted by the Jedi High Council to ask King Katuunko for permission to set up a supply base on Toydaria so the Republic could send relief supplies to the people of Ryloth, who were suffering from a droid invasion. Organa, aboard his personal ship, the Tantive IV, traveled to Toydaria, where he met up with the Gungan Representative Jar Jar Binks at the Katuunko's royal palace. Together they are granted an audience with the king and his council, but negotiations are rendered complicated by the arrival of Lott Dod, the Senate representative of the Trade Federation sent by Count Dooku, who learned of Organa's mission when they intercepted his communication with the Jedi. Organa and Binks stressed their humanitarian intentions in the matter, but Dod pointed out that by agreeing to deliver supplies to Ryloth, it would be aiding Republic troops, and with Toydaria having declared strict neutrality in this war, it would destroy their neutrality. After thorough consideration, Katuunko officially denied the Republic their rights to a base on Toydaria. However, Organa and Binks were secretly met by the king, who told them that the humanitarian factor had actually gained his favor. He agreed to load the supply ships they already had at the time with a preliminary supply of resources if Organa could keep the involvement of Toydaria secret from. Organa protested, as the supplies would only aid the Twi'leks for a few days, but the king said this was the best he could supply. Knowing these supplies were better than none at all, the Senator created a plan to have Jar Jar distract Dod and his aide during a banquet, which he did with extraordinary skill, while Organa supervised the loading of the relief supplies.

The plan was successful, but when Organa and Binks were bid farewell by Katuunko, Dod protests that they have broken the agreement, as he learns of supply ships slipping through the blockade around Ryloth, a claim for which Organa demanded proof. Unable to give any, Dod left furious. However, before the diplomats departed, Katuunko announced that in the light of these events Toydaria may reconsider it's stance of neutrality, which was greatly appreciated by Organa.

Hostage

During the Senate hostage crisis, Organa, along with Padmé Amidala and other Senators, was taken hostage by bounty hunter Cad Bane and compatriots, who wanted to exchange their freedom for the release of Ziro the Hutt. Padme told Organa she had the jedi's lightsaber with her. When the Hutt crime lord was freed, Cad Bane and his team set the charges in the room the Senators were held in and left the building. Once safely away, Bane detonated the charges, but Bail Organa and the other Senators were saved by the Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker, who managed to get them to the safe distance right before the explosion.

Seeking peace over war

When the Republic Senate debated on deregulation of the banks, Organa suggested that they should wait and see if deregulation was the best choice at the time being for the Republic, since it was deep in debt. After Padmé Amidala's successful meeting with Separatist Senator Mina Bonteri about the Separatist Congress voting on peace. When the Republic heard about separatist peace bill, Organa stated deregulation was no longer. Unfortunately, during the republic Senate's vote, the separatist military stage droid suicide bombing on the power generators. The Republic senate then voted on deregulating the banks.

After the bombing, Dooku sent a message to the Senate, stating that the Republic launched attack on their soil, killing the sponsor of their peace bill, Senator Bonteri. After the message, Senator Burtoni suggest that the Republic purchase 5 million more troopers, drafting a bill that would raise funds for these troops from the Banking Clan. Meeting with fellow senators Padmé Amidala and Onaconda Farr, Organa revealed that Republic Intelligence confirmed that Dooku's thugs were behind the message provided to the Senate. Fighting the bill, Senators Organa and Amidala found data on the Banking Clan, revealing that they were charging 25% interest, which drained funds from social programs. Realizing the threat of this bad loan, the Senators aproached other like-minded congressmen, such as Senator Mot-Not Rab in hopes of forming a causcus with little success. After meeting with Senator Farr, who was recently the victim of an assault, Organa himself was attacked by two bounty hunters, Robonino and Chata Hyoki. Protected by hisguards, Organa was severely injured in the struggle, unable to speak, and therefore asked Amidala to deliver a speech that would kill the bill. Amidala was successful in swaying most of the Senators in their favor.

The murder of Onaconda Farr

After Organa recovered from the attempted attack, he worked closely with Senators Amidala], Mon Mothma, and Farr in their effort to reduce and eventually halt the production of clone trooper]s and end the fighting. Shortly after a monumental speech by Amidala urging the Galactic Senate to vote for such a movement, Farr became ill during a celebratory meeting, dying soon after. Organa, along with his allies, attended the funeral, and was present in Chancellor Palpatine's office afterwards when Lieutenant Tan Divo reported that Farr's death was in fact a murder. When Organa and Amidala, along with Mothma and the late Farr's aide Lolo Purs expressed a discontent in Divo's investigation methods, the two set out to find the murderer themselves. Speaking with two of Farr's greatest political enemies, Senators Mee Deechi and Halle Burtoni, they discovered that Farr had held several secretive meetings within Coruscant's docking area. After setting out to the locale only to be shot at, lose their attacker, and be thoroughly reprimanded by Lt. Divo, Organa and Amidala returned to Deechi's office under the suspicion that he set them up, only to discover the Umbaran dead, stabbed through the heart. Divo quickly shut them in his heavily guarded office with Mothma and Purs for protection, although Farr's former aide expressed an immediate discontent with the situation and stormed out. She returned soon after, claiming to have been attacked by Senator Burtoni, who was soon arrested and charged for murder. As the Kaminoan was being led out in handcuffs, Amidala had one last memory, that Farr was killed by a poison specifically engineered towards Rodians and Lolo Purs had not partaken in any refreshments that day. Caught at last, Purs held Amidala captive for a short while before the Senator was able to escape and knock her unconscious, allowing Divo to arrest the culprit and release the innocent Burtoni.

Rising concerns

As the Clone Wars dragged on, Organa became concerned about Palpatine's growing powers. Because of his newfound relationship with Kenobi, Organa started cultivating a friendly relationship with the Jedi High Council, which was also concerned, and began seeking out similarly wary Senators. As a diplomat, Organa was often on the front lines of the war; he was engaged in actual fighting during both the Battle of Boz Pity and the Battle of Coruscant, although he fought involuntarily in the latter. He also visited Qalydon and Metalorn, and served with and befriended Giles Durane, saving the man's life on more than one occasion.

After Organa's vessel was attacked by pirates, the Senate was going to vote on an Enhanced Security and Enforcement Act. Finis Valorum soon infiltrated Organa's 500 Republica apartment, tired of watching from the sidelines. Valorum believed that Palpatine was power hungry and would not give up his emergency powers once the war was over, destroying everything in his way. Unfortunately, Palpatine had cameras in many droids, having recorded their conversations. Organa tried bringing up the subject in the Senate, but a bombing on Valorum's transport issued the Senate to go through with the act anyway.

Last days of the Republic

During the Great Jedi Purge, after witnessing clone troopers gun down Padawan Zett Jukassa, Organa was determined to intercept any surviving Jedi before they "walked into this catastrophe." Organa managed to locate and rescue Masters Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi. When he took them back to Coruscant, he sat with Padmé Amidala as Palpatine declared himself Galactic Emperor. Despite his revulsion at the concept, Amidala told him to vote in favor of Palpatine, both being outnumbered and realizing the added benefits that time and access to Imperial knowledge would have on a resistance movement.

After Yoda's failed attempt to kill Palpatine at the Grand Convocation Chamber of the Senate Building, Organa managed to rescue the Jedi Master before security could find him. They then fled Coruscant to the planetoid Polis Massa and contacted Kenobi on the planet Mustafar. Kenobi, having defeated his former apprentice Anakin Skywalker who had fallen to the dark side of the Force, arrived with the droids C-3PO and R2-D2 and a pregnant Padmé, who was in a critical condition. The medical team who tried to save her discovered that she was dying, having apparently lost the will to live. However, before her death Padmé managed to give birth to healthy twins, Luke and Leia Skywalker.

Arriving on Naboo, Bail and the Jedi discussed the fate of the twins. Organa offered to take Leia as his own, having for a long time discussed adopting a baby girl with his wife Breha; they had had many difficulties in producing an heir, and doctors had informed them that another attempt to conceive a child would probably kill Breha.

Organa also took the droids into his service (and ordered C-3PO's memory wiped), placing them in the care of Tantive IVs captain Raymus Antilles. Along with Mon Mothma, Organa attended Padmé's funeral on Naboo. He continued to serve in the Senate well into the days of the Galactic Empire, where he remained a representative for Alderaan until his adopted daughter Leia took over one year before the Battle of Yavin. Bail was one of the few people in the galaxy who were aware that Palpatine was a Sith Lord, presumably having been informed of this by Yoda.

In this time, he was known for wearing clothing in the style of the Republic Classic era.