Key facts
- The UN Security Council will conduct an initial round of informal straw poll ballots on Thursday.
- Seven candidates are currently seeking to become the next UN Secretary-General.
- The straw polls are secret and non-binding, with members voting to "encourage," "discourage," or express "no opinion" on candidates.
- The process could involve multiple rounds and extend into late September or early October.
- The Security Council will adopt a resolution recommending an appointment to the UN General Assembly.
The United Nations Security Council is set to begin an informal process to select the next UN Secretary-General, with the first round of "straw poll" ballots scheduled for Thursday. Fifteen Council members will participate in the closed-door voting to assess support for the seven candidates vying to replace Antonio Guterres, whose second five-year term concludes at the end of the year.
The candidates represent Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guyana, Senegal, and Uganda. The straw polls are non-binding and secret, allowing members to vote "encourage," "discourage," or "no opinion" for each contender. This initial phase aims to reveal overall support levels without identifying which of the five veto-wielding permanent members (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) may have cast negative votes. Later rounds may differentiate votes from permanent members.
The successor to Guterres faces the significant challenge of reforming the UN's bureaucracy and revitalizing its global standing. Historical precedent suggests the selection process could extend through the summer and into early autumn if consensus is not reached quickly. The Security Council will ultimately adopt a resolution recommending a candidate to the 193-member UN General Assembly, a step typically seen as a formality.
Zenon Mukongo Ngay, UN ambassador for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and current president of the Security Council, confirmed the upcoming poll. He stated that Olara Otunnu, the most recent entrant to the race, would be included, despite not having participated in prior informal hearings with other candidates. Otunnu is noted for having invented the straw poll system for selecting a UN chief in 1981.