Why Sisko?

[Skywalker]

I don't know how big DS9 was in comparison to K-7, but even going by that logic, Sisko still should have started out as a captain, at least. We know that DS9 was much larger than even a Galaxy-class starship. Commanders are typically placed in command of small vessels like frigates, not ships of the line or huge bases like DS9.

 

[Herkimer Jitty]

He wasn't in command of it. Again, he was the administrator. The station belonged to the Bajorans, they just wanted Starfleet to run it for them. So, Sisko answers to Starfleet and the Provisional Gov't.

I imagine it was felt that a lower-ranking officer would streamline things, so that there isn't an admiral out there getting pushy? Maybe the Bajorans felt a CMDR-grade guy would be more manageable?

 

[Skywalker]

Politics would be about the only reasonable in-universe explanation, yeah.

 

[neozeks]

We know that DS9 was much larger than even a Galaxy-class starship.

Physically, yes. But in regard to crew size? In Captive Pursuit, O'Brien tells Tosk only about 300 people live on the station, and that's including civilians. That's several times smaller than a Galaxy-class complement. DS9 may be huge, but it seems that at the start of the series it was pretty empty, mostly just defunct ore processing machinery and empty cargo bays.

 

[Finn]

^Wasn't Captive Pursuit early in DS9 when there was a Bajoran exodus and Starfleet had barely started to settle in. I'd think that by the end of the second season, there would be a lot more people aboard, and he was still a Commander then.

 

[Herkimer Jitty]

The civilian population would have had another falloff with the advent of the Dominion threat and the destruction of the Odyssey. Quark even complained about it. Not everybody feels comfortable living on the potential beachhead of any possible Dominion attack.

 

[C.E. Evans]

We know that DS9 was much larger than even a Galaxy-class starship.

Physically, yes. But in regard to crew size? In Captive Pursuit, O'Brien tells Tosk only about 300 people live on the station, and that's including civilians. That's several times smaller than a Galaxy-class complement. DS9 may be huge, but it seems that at the start of the series it was pretty empty, mostly just defunct ore processing machinery and empty cargo bays.

Yeah, the CO post of DS9 didn't really warrant more than a commander's billet. Sisko was just the point man, the one having to deal with the locals. The big decisions about the Bajor Sector were likely being made at HQ by admirals (it seemed before he made captain, Sisko had to consult Starfleet on almost everything).

 

[Finn]

The civilian population would have had another falloff with the advent of the Dominion threat and the destruction of the Odyssey. Quark even complained about it. Not everybody feels comfortable living on the potential beachhead of any possible Dominion attack.

Yes, but it wasn't realized until the end of season two or Sisko wouldn't have taken a runabout into the GQ in the season finale

 

[neozeks]

^Wasn't Captive Pursuit early in DS9 when there was a Bajoran exodus and Starfleet had barely started to settle in. I'd think that by the end of the second season, there would be a lot more people aboard, and he was still a Commander then.

Yeah, but that's after the discovery of the wormhole. We're talking from a pre-Emissary perspective here. If the station had only 300 people aboard after it had become one of the key strategic points in the Galaxy, it stands to reason it would have had an even smaller crew had the wormhole not been discovered. Explaining why Starfleet chose to give it to someone who was only a Commander.

Of course, it's very likely that the station's population soon increased to a level that warranted a Captain commanding it. Starfleet probably just didn't want to give Sisko special treatment by giving him a promotion he wouldn't have yet deserved following normal rules. And he did become a Captain eventually.

 

[od0_ital]

^

The novelization for DS9 'Emissary' has Sisko as a lieutenant commander durin' his time at Utopia Planitia, so his transfer to DS9 included a bump to full commander. He'd have to pay his dues at that rank before gettin' that fourth pip, like everyone else (except nuKirk).

 

[Balrog]

I would think both Bajor and Starfleet would desire a lower ranked officer as the administrator so as not to give the impression of a large military presence at Bajor after the Cardassian occupation. Think of Major Kira's reaction when she first met Sisko. She saw him and the Federation as another occupying force. Think how much more that would have been perceived if Starfleet sent a flag officer.

Sending a commander rank makes sense.

 

[od0_ital]

^

She was just pissed 'cause she had to give up the office.

 

[Hofner]

In the beginning of "Emissary" not only was DS9 supposed to be a backwater but being assigned to the place was supposed to be a real loser of a job. The whole situation was an unstable one. The common wisdom was that the Bajoran provisional government was shaky and likely to fall. Their decision to invite Starfleet in was pretty unpopular with a lot of Bajorans. So the whole situation was that the provisional government would likely fall and the next government would tell Starfleet to take a hike.

So my impression is that in sending officers to the DS9 post, Starfleet Command was just going through the motions and didn't take the whole thing seriously consiidering they would soon be kicked out anyway. One nuance is sending a Commander to command the station was an indication of how seriously Starfleet Command took the whole thing. When Picard told Sisko how he had a personal interest in the Bajorans' welfare, I got the sense that Picard felt his superiors didn't share his interest as much. Of course, the discovery of the wormhole changed all that.

So why wasn't Sisko replaced? Actually he and Dax together discovered the wormhole. What's important is that Sisko made contact with the wormhole aliens. At first they were going to close the wormhole because they didn't like corporal lifeform going through their domain but Sisko persuaded them to reopen it and allow passage. This is something Starfleet would certainly approve of.

Also as a consequence, as I see it, Sisko stablized the whole Bajoran system, including the provisional government. Sure things were still somewhat shaky but a lot better than before. So Sisko's on a real rooll, exceeding all expectations and you wanna replace him? But I guess to some, if it's working perfectly beyond all expectations, NOW'S the time to fix it. Also I'd think that by replacing Sisko with a higher ranking officer, Starfleet Command wouldn't look so good. What was wrong with their first choice? Could it be Starfleet wasn't taking the situation seriously and got caught looking stupid? Why should Starfleet's second choice for command of DS9 be taken any more or less seriously than their first?

I'm not sure the Bajorans were much of a factor aside from Kai Opaka. At first the Bajorans seemed to resent the Emissary being a non-Bajoran, it was later when they accepted him. But for a while Sisko seemed pretty unpopular. At one point they even forbade their daughters from dating Jake! That's pretty bad. Poor Jake.

Of course some of the points I made above are just my impressions but it's what I got out of the story "Emissary".

Robert