The chief governing body of the Freehold is the Shadak, made up of a council of five. Each member of the Shadak represents one of the five branches of the Drazi Race and is chosen once every five Drazi years. At this time, all Drazi break randomly into two camps, the Purple and Green, denoted by a sash. The two sides then fight a struggle for dominance over the next few months. The side that proves itself strongest at the end of this time chooses the Shadak from among its ranks. Both sides then return to being one people. This phenomenon is based on the great war that melded the five branches of the Drazi into a united race. Normally, this conflict is not lethal. It only goes as far as is necessary to prove which side is stronger. During the last Drazi power struggle in 2260, the two sides were so closely matched that deadly combat broke out. The Shadak is supported by a large number of bureaucratic committees that handle different aspects of Drazi society. They are responsible for making recommendations to the Shadak. The natural Drazi fractiousness had made this bureaucracy legendary for its infighting and delays. It can take many years for anything to clear a Drazi committee.

The Drazi have three main religions in their culture.

• Thrazda is the Way of the Fighter, the dominant belief, a warrior code that includes worship of the sun and stars.
• Kri Maru, the Sun Child, is a religion that is growing in popularity. This is a more gentle religion than Thrazda, emphasizing peaceful cooperation between all sentient beings. The prime deity of this religion is Droshalla.
• Chayar, the Azure Path, is a cult religion with mystic overtones that emphasizes individual growth through study and emulation of the Drazi legends. It is not widely practiced.

Drazi civilization is roughly 3,000 years old. Drazi social structure is group oriented with much rivalry amongst the groups. Family ties, business associations, religious groups, academic societies and military bands are just a few of these groupings. An individual Drazi's status in society rests on how well he or she serves the various groups. The Drazi society is male oriented. There is no obstacle to a female Drazi seeking power but they are taught to shy away from such ambition, preferring family duties. The Drazi are predominantly middle class with a small lower and upper class.

The Drazi tend to be aggressive and belligerent, especially if they feel they have been cheated or insulted. They also have a keen sense of freedom and do not take well to being jailed or told what to do. They are a passionate people, though passion tends to be confined to members of their own race. Drazi marriages are almost always long-standing, both male and female Drazi are very loyal to their mates and infidelity is punishable by death.

Above all, Drazi prize bravery, and loyalty. These traits make the Drazi good allies to other races. Their homeworld has been a respected member of the League of Non-Allied worlds for over 20 years, though their warlike tendencies tend to create problems at times. The Drazi are not xenophobes and will deal with most any race. The Drazi have not forgotten the Centauri aggression that followed the Narn-Centauri War1. They tend to be very hostile in their diplomatic dealings with the Republic. That is also probably why the Drazi were so quick to join the Narn Regime in attacking Centauri Prime when proof surfaced linking the Centauri to attacks on commercial freighters in 22633.

The Drazi have maintained a warrior tradition throughout their 3,000 years of civilization. Every male Drazi must spend at least three years in the military. As benefits their aggressive nature, the Drazi military is well-equipped and effective. The Drazi prefer medium cruisers to heavy cruisers. The Drazi Sun Hawk is one of the best medium warships for its size. The Drazi have a few heavy cruisers, but these are mostly used for coordinating extremely large engagements and serving as fighter carriers. Their fighters, called Sky Serpents, are among the best.

The Drazi are one of the more technologically advanced of the Younger Races. They have had interstellar flight for almost 400 years and their weapons and space technology is superb. Their fractious nature has held them back as compared to the Centauri, who are only slightly older. On the less warlike side, the Drazi have developed solar technology to a very high degree, powering the vast majority of their energy consumption.