Six candidates enter race to succeed António Guterres as UN Secretary-General

Six candidates enter race to succeed António Guterres as UN Secretary-General
Six candidates enter race to succeed António Guterres as UN Secretary-General - The candidates are, from top left: Michelle Bachelet, Maria Fernanda Espinosa, Rafael Grossi, Rebeca Grynspan, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Macky Sall. (Photo: AFP)
The candidates are, from top left: Michelle Bachelet, Maria Fernanda Espinosa, Rafael Grossi, Rebeca Grynspan, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Macky Sall. (Photo: AFP)

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Six candidates will face questions from diplomats, UN staff and civil society representatives as the race to replace António Guterres enters a decisive phase.

The race to choose the next United Nations (UN) Secretary-General enters a crucial stage on Thursday, with six candidates set to take part in a public debate ahead of the formal selection process, which begins next week.
The 90-minute event, to be held in the UN General Assembly Hall and broadcast by Bloomberg, will allow diplomats, UN staff and civil society representatives to question the candidates on how they would lead the world body amid growing financial and political challenges.
The candidates are former Senegalese president Macky Sall, former Chilean president Michelle Bachelet, Ecuador's María Fernanda Espinosa, Argentina's Rafael Grossi, Costa Rica's Rebeca Grynspan and Guyana's Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett. One of them will succeed Secretary-General António Guterres when his term ends on December 31.

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General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock said the debate would allow the international community to hear directly from the contenders for the UN's top job.
"In an increasingly fragmented world, the United Nations needs not only an exceptional chief administrator who will make the organisation fit for the 21st century but also the leadership and integrity of someone willing to vigorously defend the UN Charter and all its three pillars," Baerbock said in a statement.
The six candidates have already appeared before representatives of the UN's 193 member states in a series of informal dialogues. During the sessions, many called for faster reforms, greater efficiency and a more active UN role in efforts to prevent and resolve conflicts.

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Attention will now shift to the Security Council, which is expected to hold its first confidential straw poll on July 30. The informal vote is intended to gauge the level of support for each candidate before the Council settles on a single name to recommend to the General Assembly.
A candidate must secure the support of at least nine of the Council's 15 members and avoid a veto from any of its five permanent members to advance. The General Assembly will then formally appoint the successful candidate, who is due to take office on January 1, 2027.
The race has renewed calls for the UN to appoint its first female Secretary-General and for the position to go to a candidate from Latin America, in line with the organisation's long-standing, though informal, practice of rotating the post among regions.

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