Appointment of the Secretary-General
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Tomorrow (8 June) morning, the Security Council will convene in person for a private session to discuss its recommendation to the General Assembly on the appointment of the Secretary-General. (Article 97 of the UN Charter states that the Secretary-General is...
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Secretary-General António Guterres’ five-year term concludes on 31 December 2021. The process of selecting and appointing the next Secretary-General officially commenced when the British Ambassador to the UN, Barbara Woodward, acting in her capacity as president of the Security Council, and General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir, issued a joint letter on 5 February to all member states, soliciting candidates for the position.
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This report provides a comprehensive account of developments in the Security Council and General Assembly from the beginning to the end of the process, describing the major changes that culminated in the choice of António Guterres as the next Secretary-General.
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On 13 October, António Guterres was appointed as the ninth Secretary-General of the United Nations. The General Assembly has appointed eight other Secretaries-General, but the road to this decision was a very different one from previous years, when the selection of the Secretary-General was opaque and tightly controlled by the permanent members. This time, active involvement of civil society and members of the General Assembly in insisting on greater transparency and a more clearly defined selection process led to substantial changes that allowed both the General Assembly and elected members of the Security Council to play significant roles in the process.
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Following today’s (5 October), colour-coded straw poll, in which António Guterres was the only candidate with more than nine “encourage” votes and received no red ballot as a “discourage” vote, which would indicate a possible veto in a formal vote,...
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Council members will hold their first colour-coded straw poll tomorrow. Since July, five undifferentiated straw polls have been held, but this ballot will provide the first clear indication of which candidates could face a veto in a formal vote. The...
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Council members will hold their first colour-coded straw poll in early October as a further test of the viability of candidates who have been nominated for the position of the next Secretary-General. Since July, five undifferentiated straw polls have been held, but this one will provide the first clear indication of which candidates could face a veto in a formal vote. The Council will then decide whether it is ready to move to a formal vote on a resolution conveying its recommendation to the General Assembly for the next Secretary-General.
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On Monday (26 September), Council members will hold the fifth straw poll in the process to select the next Secretary-General. Like the first four straw polls held on 21 July, 5 August, 29 August and 9 September, this ballot will...
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Tomorrow (9 September), Council members will hold the fourth straw poll in the process to select the next Secretary-General. Like the first three straw polls held on 21 July, 5 and 29 August, this ballot will not differentiate between the...
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On Monday (29th August), Council members will hold their third straw poll in the process to select the next Secretary-General. Like the first two straw polls held on 21 July and 5 August, this ballot will be undifferentiated as between...
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Tomorrow morning (21 July), Security Council members will take the first step in testing the viability of the twelve nominated candidates for the post of Secretary-General when they participate in the first straw poll in the selection. The straw poll...
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The Council will hold its first straw poll on 21 July to gauge the viability of candidates who have been nominated for the position of the next UN Secretary-General. Depending on the results of that initial straw poll, there may be a second one held before the end of the month. Several informal meetings with candidates are also expected.
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In this report, we examine the major developments that have occurred since October 2015 in both the General Assembly and the Security Council.
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In mid-April, the General Assembly held three days of hearings with the nine candidates who had been formally nominated, and further hearings are expected in early June. The activity in the General Assembly appears to have prompted Council members to begin informal discussions on the next steps for the Council in the Secretary-General appointment process.
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This afternoon, Council members will discuss the next steps for the Security Council in the Secretary-General selection process under “any other business” at the request of Egypt. This is the first meeting in consultations regarding the appointment of the next...
