UN Security Council to Begin Secret Ballots for Next Secretary-General

The United Nations Security Council will hold its first informal, closed-door ballot on Thursday, commencing the process to select the next Secretary-General. This initial "straw poll" is designed to assess the level of support among the council's 15 members for the seven declared candidates aiming to replace Antonio Guterres, who will complete his second five-year term at the end of this year.

The Selection Process

Straw polls are a traditional, non-binding mechanism in the selection process. In these secret ballots, the 15 council members vote to either "encourage," "discourage," or express "no opinion" on each candidate. The results help to identify front-runners and signal which contenders lack sufficient support to proceed.

Historically, the process involves multiple rounds of polling throughout the summer, potentially concluding in September or October. While early ballots are identical, later rounds introduce a crucial distinction: the council's five permanent, veto-wielding members (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) use different colored ballots. This reveals if a "discourage" vote comes from a P5 nation, which effectively serves as a veto.

The Field of Candidates

With no clear front-runner, the race is open. The successor to Guterres will face significant challenges, including revitalizing the organization and addressing calls for bureaucratic reform. The current candidates are:

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• Rafael Grossi (Argentina), head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog
• Michelle Bachelet (Chile), former President
• Rebeca Grynspan (Costa Rica), former Vice President
• Maria Fernanda Espinosa (Ecuador), former Foreign Minister
• Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett (Guyana), former Foreign Minister
• Macky Sall (Senegal), former President
• Olara Otunnu (Uganda), a diplomat who joined the race last week

Path to Appointment

Zenon Mukongo Ngay, the U.N. ambassador for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the current Security Council president, confirmed to reporters that the first poll would take place Thursday morning. He noted that Otunnu would be included on the ballot.

The process culminates when the Security Council formally adopts a resolution recommending one candidate to the 193-member U.N. General Assembly. This recommendation requires a minimum of nine votes in favor and no vetoes from the permanent members. The subsequent approval by the General Assembly is traditionally considered a formality.